Anglerfish

(Lophius piscatorius)

Distribution: Eastern Atlantic: south-western Barents Sea to Straits of Gibraltar including the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Reported from Iceland (Ref. 4712) and Mauritania (Ref. 5377). North Atlantic specimens attain larger sizes than those collected off West Africa and they also occur in shallower depths.

Breeding: In spring, aglerfish migrate to deeper waters to breed. This helps young disperse to avoid being eaten by their parents. When the female sheds her eggs, she fertilizes them. Eggs are bound in ribbons of mucus up to 33' long. When young hatch, they rise to the surface, where they eat plankton. At about 3" long, they begin to take on their adult form and sink to the seabed.

(Linophryne arborifera)

Hunting: With a mouth-heavy body and weak fins, the anglerfish is adapted to a sit-and-wait hunting method. Many relatives (the batfish and frogfish) use the same technique; they lie on the seabed and extend a lure on a long dorsal spine to entice prey. Deep-sea anglerfish, hunting in pitch black waters 2-miles deep, have a luminous lure that they wave to and fro like a tiny torch. Onshallow, continental shelves, the seabed is relatively well-lit. The anglerfish extends its 'fishing rod' spine to suspend a fleshy lure above its huge mouth and casts the lure with a movement imitating a small worm. Attracted by the bogus bait, a fish swims in range, unaware of danger lurking below. With a swift lunge, the anglerfish gapes its cavernous mouth to engulf its victim.

Anglerfish Parts:

Lure- The lure is a flap of skin on the end of a special dorsal spine. The fish can twitch the lure seductively to entice a victim nearer the death-trap mouth.

Teeth- Several rows of long, sharp teeth line the fish's broad mouth. They point backward to grab prey and prevent escape.

Body- The body contains few muscles. It's flattened and very small compared to the head and is just large enough to contain the stomach and vital organs.

Skin- The drab-colored bosy is fringed with small tassels of skin that help disquise the fish's outline as it lies on the seabed.

Fins- Pectoral fins are seldom used for swimming, but are often used, along with the tail, for 'walking' along the seabed.

(Melanocetus johnsoni)

Did You Know?

• Anglerfish caught in tawl nets are usually hauled up with full stomachs, having eaten their fellow captives.
• The anglerfish tails are considered a delicacy and taste like crayfish.
• Among related deep-sea anglerfish, the male is a tiny creature that clings to the larger female and feeds on their body fluids.