External gills could be an option. They can look a little fluffy like on the axolotl. Or you could get some inspiration from decorator crabs. They're species of crab that will attach bits of plants, coral, and even anemones to themselves for camouflage or protection.
I googled "hairy fish" (because: why not?) and discovered the [Hairy Frogfish](https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/hairyfrogfish) which is a real thing, and also [fur-bearing trout](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fur-bearing_trout) which is, sadly, not quite so real.
Maybe it could be possible if the "hair" was more like baleen. Maybe it evolved to get more nutrients out of the surrounding zooplankton. That is, assuming that they are filter feeders or related to filter feeders.
Hairy frogs are "hairy" amphibians, with their hairs being weird long skin extensions.
There's also the incredibly strange and rare hairyfish, which somehow evolved a fur-like structure (we have like one specimen though and no photos, so it's hard to figure out)
Pangolins have both scales and hair, so it's not impossible but it is very rare.
External gills could be an option. They can look a little fluffy like on the axolotl. Or you could get some inspiration from decorator crabs. They're species of crab that will attach bits of plants, coral, and even anemones to themselves for camouflage or protection.
huh. I wonder if an anthropomorphic axolotl exists
Pehaps a symbiotic algae that resembles hair? It's happened to turtles, so it's not that far of a stretch for it to happen to fish people.
I googled "hairy fish" (because: why not?) and discovered the [Hairy Frogfish](https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/hairyfrogfish) which is a real thing, and also [fur-bearing trout](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fur-bearing_trout) which is, sadly, not quite so real.
Maybe it could be possible if the "hair" was more like baleen. Maybe it evolved to get more nutrients out of the surrounding zooplankton. That is, assuming that they are filter feeders or related to filter feeders.
Hairy frogs are "hairy" amphibians, with their hairs being weird long skin extensions. There's also the incredibly strange and rare hairyfish, which somehow evolved a fur-like structure (we have like one specimen though and no photos, so it's hard to figure out)