MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) | Weird and Wonderful: The deep-sea anglerfish is a couch potato's hero @MBARIvideo | Uploaded August 2021 | Updated October 2024, 9 hours ago.
The anglerfish is one of the most famous deep-sea animals. This bulbous beast has a “fishing pole” projecting from its head. The rod is called the “illicium”, and is made from the front part of the fish’s dorsal fin. In many deep-sea anglers, the illicium has a bioluminescent bulb, called the “esca,” at the end, which it uses to attract small fishes and crustaceans. Each species has its own unique combination of rod and lure. Some have short and sturdy illicia with a small rounded esca, while others have long and thread-like illicia with a feathery esca. Each model is suited to different methods of fishing: the long, thin models are used to “trawl” for food along the seafloor, where shorter ones pull prey from the midwaters.
A fish fishing for its own food might seem like an unusual choice, but this method is suited perfectly to the deep sea. In the vast and expansive waters of the midnight zone, food is few and far between. Pursuing prey would waste a lot of energy. Instead, a hungry anglerfish merely sets out its bioluminescent bait and waits. The glowing esca entices small fishes and crustaceans to come closer, then the anglerfish’s massive mouth and sharp teeth snap shut for a meal.
Deep-sea anglers may be most recognizable, but there are more than 300 anglerfish species in the order Lophiiformes. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and occupy a variety of habitats—even in shallow-water reefs.
Learn more on our Creature feature: mbari.org/products/creature-feature/deep-sea-anglerfish
Scientific name: order Lophiiformes
Size: to 1.2 meters (4 feet)
Depth: 300–2,500 meters (980–8,200 feet)
Editor: Ted Blanco
Writer: Katherine Irving
Production team: Raúl Nava, Kyra Schlining, Nancy Jacobsen Stout, Susan von Thun
References:
Luck, D.G. and T.W. Pietsch (2008). In-situ observations of a deep-sea ceratioid anglerfish of the genus Oneirodes (Lophiiformes: Oneirodidae). Copeia, 2008(2): 446-451. doi.org/10.1643/CE-07-075
Lundsten, L., S.B. Johnson, G.M. Cailliet, A.P. DeVogelaere, and D.A. Clague (2012). Morphological, molecular, and in situ behavioral observations of the rare deep-sea anglerfish Chaunacops coloratus (Garman, 1899), order Lophiiformes, in the eastern North Pacific. Deep-Sea Research I, 68: 46–53. doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2012.05.012
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The anglerfish is one of the most famous deep-sea animals. This bulbous beast has a “fishing pole” projecting from its head. The rod is called the “illicium”, and is made from the front part of the fish’s dorsal fin. In many deep-sea anglers, the illicium has a bioluminescent bulb, called the “esca,” at the end, which it uses to attract small fishes and crustaceans. Each species has its own unique combination of rod and lure. Some have short and sturdy illicia with a small rounded esca, while others have long and thread-like illicia with a feathery esca. Each model is suited to different methods of fishing: the long, thin models are used to “trawl” for food along the seafloor, where shorter ones pull prey from the midwaters.
A fish fishing for its own food might seem like an unusual choice, but this method is suited perfectly to the deep sea. In the vast and expansive waters of the midnight zone, food is few and far between. Pursuing prey would waste a lot of energy. Instead, a hungry anglerfish merely sets out its bioluminescent bait and waits. The glowing esca entices small fishes and crustaceans to come closer, then the anglerfish’s massive mouth and sharp teeth snap shut for a meal.
Deep-sea anglers may be most recognizable, but there are more than 300 anglerfish species in the order Lophiiformes. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and occupy a variety of habitats—even in shallow-water reefs.
Learn more on our Creature feature: mbari.org/products/creature-feature/deep-sea-anglerfish
Scientific name: order Lophiiformes
Size: to 1.2 meters (4 feet)
Depth: 300–2,500 meters (980–8,200 feet)
Editor: Ted Blanco
Writer: Katherine Irving
Production team: Raúl Nava, Kyra Schlining, Nancy Jacobsen Stout, Susan von Thun
References:
Luck, D.G. and T.W. Pietsch (2008). In-situ observations of a deep-sea ceratioid anglerfish of the genus Oneirodes (Lophiiformes: Oneirodidae). Copeia, 2008(2): 446-451. doi.org/10.1643/CE-07-075
Lundsten, L., S.B. Johnson, G.M. Cailliet, A.P. DeVogelaere, and D.A. Clague (2012). Morphological, molecular, and in situ behavioral observations of the rare deep-sea anglerfish Chaunacops coloratus (Garman, 1899), order Lophiiformes, in the eastern North Pacific. Deep-Sea Research I, 68: 46–53. doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr.2012.05.012
Follow MBARI on social media:
Facebook: facebook.com/MBARInews
Twitter: twitter.com/MBARI_News
Instagram: instagram.com/mbari_news
Tumblr: mbari-blog.tumblr.com
LinkdIn: linkedin.com/company/monterey-bay-aquarium-research-institute-mbari-
