Anglerfish
| Lophiiformes | |
|---|---|
| |
| Melanocetus johnsonii | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Subclass: | |
| Infraclass: | |
| Order: | Lophiiformes
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Ananglerfishis a marinefishthat belongs to theorderLophiiformes.Anglerfish are noted for having abait-likeappendagein front of theirheads,right above their mouths.[1]
The appendage, which resembles afishing pole,is attached to the end of thedorsal fin's frontspine,which is separated from the rest of thefin.Anglerfish light their rod withbioluminescence(their own light) and thenwiggleit tomimica small marine animal. When other creatures come to eat the small marine animal, the anglerfish eats them. They are called anglerfish because they catch fish with bait, just likeanglers,who use a rod and line (rather than nets).
One of the families, theCeratiidae,has an extraordinarymating systemwhere the male actually fuses into the female.
Evolution
[change|change source]Amitochondrialgenomephylogeneticstudy suggested that anglerfishes diversified in a short period of theLower Cretaceous,between 130 and 100 million years ago.[2]
Description
[change|change source]Thesecarnivorousbeasts can be darkbrownin color and 2–18 cm long. They have sharpteethangled inward for grippingpreyefficiently.
The appendage
[change|change source]Anglerfish have a specialappendagecalled the esca (derived fromLatinēsca,meaning "bait" ). It is used to lurepreyto theirmouths.Then the anglerfish simply chomp them down.
Species info
[change|change source]Humpback anglerfish
[change|change source]Thehumpback anglerfishis ablack seadevildiscovered and named afterJames Yate Johnson.
Two-rod anglerfish
[change|change source]Thetwo-rod anglerfishhas a unique feature; instead of just one rod, it has "two" rods, hence its name. It lives in theIndo-Pacific.
Atlantic footballfish
[change|change source]TheAtlantic footballfishis called that because of its globose shape, which is like asoccer ball.It is not literally limited to theAtlantic Ocean.
Human uses
[change|change source]Usage as food
[change|change source]Anglerfish is eaten in westernEurope,easternNorth America,Africa,andEast Asia.It is also a good source ofcollagen.
Related pages
[change|change source]References
[change|change source]- ↑"Anglerfish, Anglerfish pictures, Anglerfish facts - National Geographic".animals.nationalgeographic.com.2011.RetrievedFebruary 4,2011.
- ↑Miya M.et al.2010. Evolutionary history of anglerfishes (Teleostei: Lophiiformes): a mitogenomic perspective.BMC evolutionary biology10:58.PMID 20178642
