Message on the topic of anglerfish. Incredible animals

February 28th, 2015

Sea devils are a group of angler fish. They live on great depth, can withstand enormous pressure and have extremely unattractive appearance.

But you knew, for example, how anglerfish reproduce. For egg fertilization to occur, two different fish- male and female monkfish must grow together into one organism.

When a male anglerfish finds a suitable mate, it digs into the female’s stomach and tightly attaches itself to her. Over time, the two fish merge into single being with common skin, common blood vessels, etc. At the same time, some organs of the male atrophy - eyes, fins, etc.

Precisely because monkfish live most of their lives in the form of such a monster creature, scientists at first could not find male anglerfish in nature - they only came across females. It turned out that the males (or rather, what was left of them) were “hiding” inside.

Let's find out more about this fish...

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Are there many people in Russia who can boast that they ate the devil? Apparently, there are no such people at all. And this pleasure is quite accessible to the average European. The point is that monkfish although disgusting to look at, but delicious fish. It also lives off our coasts, including in the Barents and even the Black Sea, but here no one specifically catches it.

Monkfish, or european anglerfish(Lophius piscatorius) is a large fish up to one and a half meters long, two-thirds of which is on the head, and weighs up to 20 kilograms. The mouth is outrageously large and lined with a palisade of sharp teeth. The bare skin with a fringe of leathery lobes gives the fish an extremely disgusting appearance. There is a fishing rod on the head - the first beam shifted forward dorsal fin, from which dangles an appetizing “bait” - a small leathery bulb. All day long the devil lies motionless on the bottom and patiently waits for some fish to be tempted by his bait. Then, without hesitation, it opens its mouth and swallows the prey.

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European monkfish belongs to the family of angler fish. They live at a depth of 50-200 meters and are considered fairly common inhabitants. coastal waters. Only recently has it become known that their close relatives live in the depths of the ocean. They were called deep-sea anglers. About 120 species are now known. These amazing creatures belong to small or very small fish. Females range in length from 5-10 to 20-40 centimeters, only the ciracy grows up to a meter, and males are dwarfs measuring 14-22 millimeters.

Only females have a fishing rod. Often this gear is clearly divided into a rod, a fishing line and a luminous bait suspended at its end. For each type of angler, the bait has a shape and size unique to these fish and emits light rays of a strictly defined color. The bait is a bag filled with mucus in which glowing bacteria live. In order to emit light, bacteria need oxygen. When the anglerfish has had lunch and is busy digesting food, it no longer needs light. It can attract attention to the anglerfish large predator. Then the devil squeezes the blood vessels of the fishing line and temporarily extinguishes his flashlight.

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The rod, located above the fish's head, is directed upward and forward, and the bait dangles near the mouth. This is where gullible game is lured. Gigantaxis have a rod with a fishing line that is 4 times longer than the fish itself. This allows you to cast the bait far and, teasing the prey, lure it to its mouth, which is always ready to open. Each type of bait attracts a very specific game. This is confirmed by the fact that in the stomachs of some anglers there are constantly found fish that are rarely caught in deep-sea trawls and are considered very rare.

Everything about deep-sea anglerfish is unusual, especially reproduction. Males and females are so different from each other that they were previously considered different types fish When the male becomes an adult, he goes in search of a female. At the grooms big eyes and an impressive olfactory organ that help locate the female. For a tiny fish, finding a bride is a difficult task. Nobody knows how much time they spend on this. It is not surprising that, having found a bride, the male immediately sinks his teeth into her.

Soon the male’s lips and tongue grow onto his wife’s body, and she takes her husband as her full dependent. Through the vessels grown into his body, the female supplies him with everything he needs. The male no longer needs the jaws, intestines and eyes, and they atrophy. In the male’s body, only the heart and gills continue to work, helping to supply oxygen to his body, and even the testes. During breeding, the female spawns eggs, and the male regularly waters them with milk.

Spawning takes place at great depths, but the eggs are lighter than water and float to its surface. Here they hatch into larvae. They feed intensely, grow quickly and gradually drown until they return to their homeland in their favorite depths.

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Some species of deep-sea anglerfish are considered edible. They are caught in the USA, Africa and East Asia. Especially popular in North America meat from the tail of an anglerfish, called Monkfish or Goosefish. It tastes like lobster meat. In Japan and Korea, goose fish liver is a delicacy.

White, dense, boneless and extremely tender meat of this fish can do honor to anyone. festive table. It is suitable for frying in pieces and opened in the shape of a butterfly, or for grilling, cut into cubes and placed on skewers, as well as for boiling and stewing. Monkfish is especially popular in France, where the meat from its tail is prepared in many ways, for example with boiled vegetables, and the head, if you can get it, is used for soup.

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Why is monkfish called "tail fish"
The fishermen quickly deal with the monster's head. All that remains of the fish is practically only an edible tail, which goes on sale without the skin. Therefore, monkfish is often called the “tail” fish, whose white, dense, boneless and extremely tender meat can do honor to any holiday table. Being a master of camouflage, the monkfish, with its dark, often spotted, upper body, is almost invisible against the background of the bottom of small coastal reservoirs, among stones, pebbles and fucus. There he usually likes to lie, watching for prey. On both sides of the head, along the edge of the jaw and lips, fringed patches of skin hang down, moving in the water like algae. On the sides of the body there are wide fins, and on the back there are thin spines with a spherical thickening at the end, luring prey. This sea ​​monster can reach 2 m with a weight of 30-40 kg. Smaller specimens usually go on sale. But even a monkfish of this size can swallow enough big fish. They say that in the belly of one monkfish, 65 cm long, a young cod, 58 cm long, was found. Monkfish is found in many seas, mainly in the Atlantic and the North Sea, up to Iceland.

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The monkfish is also called a “frog” because it can jump
Sometimes during a hunt, the monkfish moves in a very unusual way: it jumps along the bottom, pushing off with its pectoral fins. For this they called him “frog”.

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In one species of monkfish, the “fishing rod” is retracted into a special channel on the back. The fish regulates the glow of the bubble by narrowing or expanding the walls of the arteries. And in the bottom-dwelling Galatetauma, the “fishing rod” is generally located in the mouth. Another species uses glowing teeth as bait.

To hunt, the angler just needs to swim or rest quietly on the sand, from time to time opening his mouth and swallowing an overly curious fish. She has no chance to escape: the monkfish’s mouth sucks in water along with everything that swims nearby: mollusks, crustaceans, sometimes even stingrays and sharks. A very hungry anglerfish can catch a waterfowl. However, in this case, he often chokes on the feathers and dies.

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The monkfish does not know how to compare the size of its prey with the feeling of hunger. Ichthyologists have more than once observed cases when a predator caught and bit a large fish, much larger than itself, but could not let go due to the structural features of the teeth.

Anglerfish breed as unusually as they hunt. Males do not have “fishing rods” at all, and they themselves are very tiny. While females often reach two meters in length, males rarely exceed 5 millimeters. Each female carries several males: they dig into her, grow together and gradually turn into genitals.

Hungry sea devils are dangerous for scuba divers. They have very poor eyesight, which is compensated by their courage and gluttony, so it is better to stay as far away from a hungry anglerfish as possible.

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However, where does such a big name come from? According to one version, this fish received it for its, to put it mildly, extravagant appearance, even against the generally bright and diverse background of the inhabitants of the depths of the sea. A flat body, a huge ugly head with a huge mouth, in some species making up two-thirds of the total length, crowned with a palisade of sharp teeth, evokes a feeling of horror. These teeth are capable of turning prey into a mess of torn tissue and bones.

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In general, the monkfish is incredibly voracious and therefore boldly rushes even at a seemingly obviously unattainable goal. And in “hungry” moments the sufferer almost complete absence In sight, a large anglerfish rises to the upper layers of water from the depths and at such moments it is capable of attacking scuba divers.

You can meet such an inhabitant of the deep sea just at the end of summer, after a grueling hungry spawning, the “devils” go to shallow water, where they eat intensively until the fall, after which they go to wintering in greater depths.

However, compared to sharks, barracudas and octopuses, true sea devils or anglerfish do not pose an immediate danger to humans. Be that as it may, their terrible teeth can disfigure the hand of an unwary fisherman for life. However, the monkfish does much more damage not to humans, but to others commercial species fish Thus, there are legends among fishermen that, having fallen into a fishing net, he ate the fish that got there while he was there.

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It would seem that the depths of the seas and oceans are completely unsuited for life. The pressure there is simply enormous, the water is cold, and there is constant darkness. It is almost impossible to survive in such conditions. And yet, life exists there, albeit in slightly modified forms that we do not encounter in ordinary life.

A bright representative deep sea inhabitants is an angler fish. It got its name because of its peculiar dorsal fin, which looks like a fishing rod. The anglerfish lives at depths from 1500 to 3000 meters, and at the same time feels great.

The dorsal fin, transformed into a “fishing rod,” is used by the fish as bait. At its end there is a small growth filled with a huge number of glowing bacteria. The fin itself is located above the toothy mouth of the fish. Light attracts sea ​​creatures, which swim towards him as if enchanted, and as a result fall into the mouth of the anglerfish. The most interesting thing is that the fish can control its glow. By compressing or unclenching the blood vessels, it regulates the amount of oxygen supplied to the bacteria. With more of it, the glow will be brighter, and vice versa.
The structure of the “fishing rod” can be completely different. It can be either retractable or stationary. The retractable “fishing rod” is retracted into the channel, which is located on the back of the fish. In this case, the victim, following it, falls directly into the anglerfish’s mouth.

An anglerfish hunts while lying on the seabed. He does not waste energy on movement. The body color matches the color of the sea day, which makes it almost invisible. It attracts prey only with its glowing “fishing rod.” The fish's mouth is very large, which cannot be said about the esophagus. Very often it grabs large sea creatures that it cannot swallow. The teeth do not allow the victim to be brought back. As a result, the anglerfish dies. The anglerfish feeds on deep-sea fish, melamphaea, crustaceans, and mollusks.

The breeding season is summer period. Lying on the seabed, the female lays up to a million eggs, which slowly rise to the upper, warmer layers of water. They hatch into larvae that feed on copepods. By the time they transform into angler fish, the fry descend to a depth of up to 1000 meters.

The monkfish or anglerfish, as it is also called, is a predator, sea bottom fish, which belongs to the class of bony fish.

Monkfish fish - quite large predatory fish, which lives at the bottom and can reach a length of about two meters.

European angler fish - monkfish: description and structure

Monkfish is a predatory sea ​​fish, which lives at the bottom of the sea. It has a fairly large build and can reach a length of about two meters.

Thus, the weight of one lantern fish can reach about twenty kilograms. At the same time, the body and huge head are quite thick in the horizontal direction. Thus, all types of anglerfish have a wide mouth that is several times larger than their head.

In the features of the structure it is worth noting several characteristic features:

Habitat of the European anglerfish

The European anglerfish is quite common in the oceans and off various coasts. Lantern fish can be found in Atlantic Ocean. It can live off the coast of Canada and the United States of America. Various varieties monkfish found near the coasts of Japan and Korea.

At the same time, you can find monkfish in the waters of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk and the Yellow Sea, as well as in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and the Black Sea.

Monkfish fish can also live in the depths Indian Ocean, which spans the end of Africa. Depending on the habitat, fish can live at different depths. It can be eighteen meters and up to two kilometers.

Monkfish nutrition

Monkfish is a predatory fish. Its diet consists of other fish that live in the water column. Various small fish, such as gerbil or cod, can enter its stomach. It can also feed on small stingrays, sharks and eels. In addition, it can be various crustaceans and mollusks.

Quite often, predators rise closer to the surface of the water, where they can hunt for mackerel or herring. At the same time there have been cases of fish attacking birds that landed on the sea waves.

Each monkfish fish hunts from ambush, having natural camouflage- it may not be noticed in thickets and algae. Thus, it lies on the ocean floor, buried in the soil and hidden in algae. The potential prey grabs the bait, which is located at the end of the monkfish's fishing rod. Thus, the European anglerfish opens its mouth and swallows its prey. At exactly six milliseconds, the prey falls into the predator's mouth. Monkfish fish hunts while long time in ambush. He may hide and hold his breath for several minutes.

Types of European anglerfish

Today, several varieties of European anglerfish are known. Let's look at each of them.

1. . It is a predatory fish with a body length of up to one meter. The body weight of the fish can reach up to twenty-two kilograms. Moreover, it has a rounded head, which tapers towards the tail. Outwardly, it may resemble a tadpole. The lower jaw is pushed forward - when the predator's mouth is closed, the lower teeth can be seen. At the same time, the upper and lower jaws are dotted with sharp and thin teeth. They can be inclined deep into the mouth and reach a length of two centimeters. Almost all mandibles of monkfish have large size and are arranged in three rows. At the same time, the upper jaw has large teeth that grow only towards the center, and the lateral areas are slightly smaller than the main size. The gills of this fish do not have covers and are located immediately behind the pectoral fins. The fish's eyes are directed upward. In addition, the first ray of the fish has a leathery growth that glows due to the settled bacteria. In this case, the skin of the back and sides can be of different shades, including various spots. This species of fish lives up to thirty years. You can meet it in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean. It can live at depths of up to six hundred and seventy meters.
2. European anglerfish- This the most common type which reaches a length of up to two meters. The weight of the fish can exceed twenty kilograms. The body of the anglerfish is flattened from the back to the belly. Its size can be up to 75% of the total length of the fish. Distinctive feature this fish is his a huge mouth that looks like a crescent moon. Thus, it has several hook-like teeth and a jaw, which, like the first variant, is pushed forward. The gill openings of the European anglerfish are located behind the wide pectoral fins, which allow them to move along the bottom and burrow into it in anticipation of prey. The body of the fish is devoid of scales and has a variety of bone spines and skin growths different lengths and shapes. The hind fins are located opposite the anal fin. All anglerfish have six rays. The color of this fish varies depending on its habitat. As a rule, they occur on the back and sides dark spots, which are colored brown, red and green. The European devil lives exclusively in the Atlantic Ocean. Quite often you can find an anglerfish at a depth of 18 to 550 meters in the Black Sea.
3. Black-bellied anglerfish quite close to their European relatives. They are small in size and have a relatively wide head. The length of the fish can be from half a meter to one meter. The structure of the jaw apparatus will not differ in any way from individuals of another species. At the same time, the monkfish has a characteristic abdominal part, and its back and sides will be colored pink, gray. Depending on where it lives, its body may have some dark and light spots. The lifespan of fish can be more than twenty-one years. This type of anglerfish is widespread in the eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean. In Great Britain and Ireland it lives at depths of up to 650 meters. Moreover, it can be found at a depth of up to one kilometer in the waters of the Mediterranean and Black Seas.
4. is a typical predatory fish that lives in the Sea of ​​Japan, Okhotsk, Yellow and East China Sea. In some cases it can be found in Pacific Ocean. It can burrow at a depth of fifty meters to two kilometers. In this case, an individual can grow from one and a half meters in length. Like other representatives, he has long tail and curved teeth on the lower jaw. He also has a body yellow, which is covered with various growths and tubercles, which are colored in a single color brown. The spots will be light in color with a characteristic dark outline. Unlike the back and sides, they are slightly lighter. The back has characteristic light ends.
5. has a characteristic flattened head and short tail. This fish tail occupies more than a third of the length of the entire body. At the same time, adult lanternfish do not reach a length of more than one meter. Their lifespan is about eleven years. The angler fish lives at a depth of up to four hundred meters in the waters of the Atlantic. Quite often it can be found in the western Indian Ocean and the coast of Namibia. In addition, they can live in the waters of Mozambique and Southern Africa. The body of the Burmese monkfish is slightly flattened towards the belly and covered with fringe and leathery growths. At the same time, at the top of the beam of the lantern fish there is a fin on the back. Outwardly, it resembles a shred. The gill slits are located behind the pectoral fins, slightly below their level. The lower part of the fish is completely white and light.

Each type of lantern fish has its own structural characteristics, as well as its own habitat.

The “monkfish” fish, or scientifically the European anglerfish, is a representative of the anglerfish family. Most members of this family live at great depths, where they have no natural enemies, which makes this fish one of the representatives of the crown food chain within its own small ecosystem. This representative of the ray-finned species received its name due to its extremely specific appearance and general aggressive behavior in the flora.

Appearance

The appearance of the “monkfish” differs significantly from other representatives of the class of ray-finned fish to which this animal belongs. In general, several common features, characteristic of each anglerfish:

• large and strong mouth, filled sharp teeth for tearing scales;
• short body;
• the presence of a fluorescent process on the head;
• needle-shaped fins.

The name "monkfish" was given to this fish because of its overall threatening impression. IN Russian language the closest idiom would be "scary as hell."

The total length of the fish is about 1.5–2 meters, weight – up to 57 kilograms. The body is naked, covered with skin processes, near the mouth There are several layers of skin that move when the animal moves. The body is black, brown, less often whitish. This appearance provides the monkfish with excellent camouflage. The creature is almost invisible in dense thickets of algae and on the hazy bottom.

Fluorescent appendage of anglerfish

Anglerfish got their name from the presence of a fluorescent appendage on their head. This organ occupies an extremely important place in the mechanism of the devil’s life, since it serves as bait for food. With the help of a shoot the individual attracts small fish to itself, after which it eats it. From a distance, the “monkfish” looks like a kind of fisherman. In its natural habitat, the anglerfish is practically invisible, and the appendage on the head serves as the only source of light and a visible point.

The “fishing rod” itself on the devil’s head is the first ray of the dorsal fin, deformed and modified. The length of this process, also known as the illicium, is up to 25% of the length of the devil's body. Placement on the head allows him to successfully hunt, luring prey directly to his mouth with the help of illicium. Deep sea anglerfish belongs to the ray-finned class of fish, but has little in common with other representatives of the species.

Habitat

The habitat of the “monkfish” is deep water, where this fish has practically no natural enemies, which is why the population of anglerfish is quite large. In deep water there is practically no abundant food, which is why these fish have adapted, growing a fluorescent organ. The main component of the animal's diet is small fish and crustaceans. The voluminous mouth allows it to swallow prey significantly larger than the “devil” itself.

The deep-sea anglerfish is capable of hunting by ambush, waiting for prey at the bottom. Powerful pectoral fins, widened at the end, allow the angler easy to move along the bottom, and the general shading of the habitat ensures invisibility for other fish. The average habitat depth of the “monkfish” is 300–350 meters; some members of the family live at depths of up to 550 meters.

The deep-sea anglerfish is distributed in the Atlantic Ocean, from the coast of Iceland to the Sea of ​​Guinea. Some anglerfish were found in the Black Sea. In general, this animal prefers cool, deep waters.

Lifestyle and reproduction

The angler fish spends most of its life in search of food, hunting or lying on the muddy bottom. The fish is even able to jump onto its prey thanks to its strong pectoral fins. These fish are solitary and spend most of the time outside the company of your partner or joint. When they reach fertile age, they go to spawn in the area of ​​the British Isles or the Iberian Peninsula, spring and winter, respectively. Spawning occurs at the maximum available depth, sometimes reaching 2 thousand meters.

Human interaction

Angler fish, nicknamed in society “fish with a flashlight,” is an extremely valuable object of the fishing industry. Its boneless meat is prized in several world cuisines, mainly in France, where “monkfish” is served with white wine as an extremely prestigious and status dish. In 2005–2014, the level of commercial fishing for monkfish reached its maximum volumes. The record number of angler fish catches was 33.2 thousand tons. Fishing occurs through a bottom trawl, which captures most of the individuals buried in the mud. The leaders in fishing are Great Britain and France.

This individual has found its application in the following industries:

• genetics - scientists are trying to synthesize a fluorescent substance produced by bacteria;
• industry - anglerfish meat is extremely valuable;
• ichthyology - the anglerfish is the crown of the food chain in its ecosystem.

According to gourmets, monkfish meat is quite tough, but boneless and very nutritious.