There are lots of images of anglerfish on the web, almost all looking fearsome to say the least. They have sharp teeth, spikey bodies, and very nasty expressions. It is surprising, therefore, that there has not been a rock band named after them. On the other hand, Ikue Mori, and experimental musician from New York City, has recorded a piece, "Angler Fish", on her Hex Kitchen album.Anglerish are not a single species, and indeed, occur in three sub-orders. Some are deep sea critters, while others live in shallow water. If you got here from the IB Honors page, the thumbnail you clicked on shows a deep sea species, Fanfin angler (Caulophryne polynema). I chose that because it was about as ugly as they come.
Anglerfish are the perfect, yet to be exploited, subject for a horror movie or a prime time soap opera. The females are big and nasty. They attract their prey using their bodies as lures, dangling luminescent baubles in dark water and making them dance irresistibly. But both their mouths and bodies are almost infinitely distendible, and whatever they attract, even up to twice the size of their own bodies, they swallow whole.
The males, on the other hand, are small and parasitic. When they are free living, they are largely eyes and mouth, but they don't have a digestive track. When they find a female, they attach themselves to her with their teeth, receiving all nourishment through the attachment. Gradually, their bodies disintegrate, merging with hers. Over a period of time, they are reduced in size and complexity until they are nothing but testes, to be used at the place and time of her choosing.
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