![]() They are primarily mesopelagic, living in open water, with very few caught below 1,000 metres (3,300 feet 550 fathoms). Their poor musculature and cumbersome morphology indicate that mature female footballfish are probably poor swimmers and largely sedentary, lie-in-wait predators. The footballfish was first discovered in 1837 by Johan Reinhardt. There are six branchiostegal rays and 19 vertebrae the parietal is lacking throughout life, there are no epurals, and the pelvic bone is triradiate. In both sexes, the fins are spineless: the single dorsal fin with 5–6 soft rays, the pectoral fins with 14–18, the anal fin with four, and the caudal fin with 19. The jaw lacks teeth, whereas those of the denticular bone have fused into a larger mass the upper denticular bone possesses 10–17 hooked denticles. The pterygiophore of the illicium does not protrude from the snout, and there is no hyoid barbel.Īt maturity, the streamlined males have an enlarged posterior nostril (with 10–17 lamellae) slightly ovoid eye with an enlarged pupil creating a narrow anterior aphakic space no ilicium or esca and the head and body is covered in dermal spinules, those along the snout midline being enlarged. Escal morphology varies between species, and it may or may not possess denticles or accessory appendages, the latter either branched or unbranched. ![]() Originating above or slightly in advance of the small eye is an illicium (the "fishing rod") and at its end a bioluminescent, bulbous esca (the "fishing lure", its light owing to symbiotic bacteria). Footballfish females differ from those of other ceratioid families by their shortened, blunt snout along with the chin, it is covered in sensory papillae. The subequal jaws are anteriorly lined with rows of numerous close-set, depressible, and retrorse teeth vomerine teeth are absent. In females, the mouth is large and oblique. ![]() Both are a reddish brown to black in life. Their flesh is gelatinous, but thickens in the larger females, which also possess a covering of "bucklers" - round, bony plates each with a median spine - that are absent in males. ![]() The family contains about 22 species all in a single genus, Himantolophus (from the Greek imantos, "thong, strap", and lophos, "crest").Īs in most other deep-sea anglerfish families, sexual dimorphism is extreme: the largest females may exceed lengths of 60 centimetres (24 inches) and are globose in shape, whereas males do not exceed 4 cm ( 1 + 1⁄ 2 in) as adults and are comparatively fusiform. Currently, it's in the custody of the California Department of Fish & Wildlife.The footballfish form a family, Himantolophidae, of globose, deep-sea anglerfishes found in tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Ocean. It's not clear where the fish will end up, but it is likely it will go to an educational institution or museum. "Males latch onto the female with their teeth and become 'sexual parasites,' eventually coalescing with the female until nothing is left of their form but their testes for reproduction. Never miss a story - sign up for PEOPLE 's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.įemales are known to grow up to 24 inches long, but male angler fish usually only grow to be about an inch long because "their sole purpose is to find a female and help her reproduce," according to the state park. The fish discovered Friday is known to be a female, because only female angler fish possess a long stalk on their head with a bioluminescent tip, which is used to lure prey in the darkness.Īngler fish also have razor sharp teeth like "pointed shards of glass" and their mouths are large enough that they can swallow prey as big as their own bodies. ![]() 'River Monster' Fish Caught in Detroit 'Has Been Roaming Our Waters Over 100 Years' ![]()
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