People have new fear unlocked after couple nearly step on 'psycho' fish at night

A video posted online has people developing a whole new fear when it comes to what is lurking in the ocean.

The clip shows a small fish with a big mouth peeking out of a little burrow in the sand.

But while it looks like the video is being filmed underwater, it soon pans away to reveal that the fish's home is actually in a tiny submerged burrow on the beach itself, with a couple encountering it while taking a walk at night.

It's possible that the fish's burrow is normally covered over and was revealed by low tide, which seems likely given how wet the rest of the sand was.

The couple behind the video, who go by BurrupandAway on YouTube, can be seen tentatively reaching out with a fishing spear to touch the fish as it looks out with a pair of bright blue eyes.

As the implement breaks the water the fish slowly considers it before trying to nibble it and quickly disappearing down its burrow.

But while the fish clearly wasn't interested in saying hello, many people were left horrified by the video.

The fish was peeking out of a burrow. (Instagram/@wildtouring)

After initially being shared on BurrupandAway's YouTube channel, it was reshared to Instagram with the caption: "Imagine nearly stepping on this bad boy while you walk the mud flats on a remote island at night!"

One person took to the comments, saying: "This is the stuff of nightmares," while a second commented: "I screamed from my phone."

A third joked: "On todays episode of why I’m terrified the ocean."

Many people commented that the fish in question was likely to be a species of Jawfish.

The fish considers the thing being thrust into its burrow. (YouTube/@BurrupandAway)

These are small fish which are commonly found in coastal areas and which live in little burrows in the sand.

This particular Jawfish looks like a Black Jawfish or Opistognathus inornatus, which is commonly found in, you guessed it, Australia.

They are endemic to the north western coast of the Land Down Under, and can grow to a length of around 55cm, making them a pretty large kind of jawfish.

Jawfish are also known for their habit of incubating their eggs and their hatchlings in their own mouths, which is could be either sinister or adorable depending on how you look at it.

A regular jawfish pictured with its hatchlings in its mouth. (Getty Stock Image)

While jawfish are not a serious danger to humans it's still definitely best to keep your distance as they can be territorial around their burrows.

Some species are even known to spit sand and rocks at intruders.

Needless to say, if you're not sure what something is when you encounter it while out and about, it's definitely best to keep your distance.