Deep sea fish. Unusual underwater inhabitants: who lives at the bottom of the ocean? Big red jellyfish
The waters of the World Ocean occupy more than 70% of the entire surface of planet Earth, however, today the inhabitants of the depths of the ocean remain the least studied by ichthyologists due to difficult access to their habitat. In the lower layers of the seas and oceans there are many of the deepest fish and creatures that surprise, and sometimes simply shock, with their appearance or way of life. A significant part of them was discovered relatively recently, and many have yet to come to the attention of researchers of the deep sea.
general characteristics
Deep-sea fish live on the slopes and in the ocean floor, within 200-6000 m of the depth of the World Ocean. About 2000 of these are known, and there are about 10-15 species of those that live below 6000 m, which is 2% of the total number of the deepest sea creatures.
Categories
All of them can be classified according to the presence of specific organs:
- truly deep-sea - characterized by luminous organs, telescope eyes, and other adaptive elements;
- Shelf-deep-sea - they do not have such manifestations, they are located on the slopes of continents.
According to the nature of nutrition, the division takes place into 3 groups:
- Planktivores - the diet is based on plankton.
- Benthophages - feed on carrion and invertebrates.
- Predators - attack and attack other marine inhabitants with the aim of further eating.
An interesting fact is that such categories do not inhabit any of the large lakes in the world, except Baikal, which is considered the deepest on the planet.
Description
Among the creatures that live on the ocean floor, there are those that are completely blind or, conversely, have sharp eyesight to track prey, which is due to the constant darkness in these layers of water. Since the seabed is mostly muddy, many living organisms are characterized by a specific body structure for convenient and fast movement - a flat body, long legs, the presence of needles or huge claws.
Some creatures may be distinguished by the presence of bioluminescence as illuminated body parts (processes, fins, tails). This method of adaptation to the environment provides some opportunities for successful life activities, for example, it can serve as bait for prey, as illumination in dark waters. It is often used for camouflage on the seabed or to scare away predators.
The closer to the bottom of the ocean, the stronger the pressure becomes and the temperature of the water decreases, and there is significantly less food for food. All these factors significantly influenced the structural features of some fish species. In these places you can find the most unusual inhabitants of the ocean, which have huge mouths and heads, the size of which can be several times greater than the length of their own body.
Rating of the most common types
The list of TOP 10 deep-sea fish includes the most incredible and unusual representatives of the deep sea. The appearance of many of them is so unusual that they resemble aliens from other planets. However, this list is much wider and can be supplemented with other equally interesting specimens due to the great diversity that live in the depths of the World Ocean.
Another name - goblin shark - was obtained due to the unusual shape of the head: there is a beak-like outgrowth and long jaws extending forward. It also has an unusual pink color due to the proximity of blood vessels to the surface of the skin.
It lives deeper than 200 m in almost all oceans, the maximum diving depth is 1300 m, the diet consists of crabs, fry and squid. Catching prey is carried out by extending its jaws and swallowing it along with water.
There are several rows of teeth - separately for hunting prey and splitting the strong shells of various crustaceans.
The length of males is 2.4-3.7 m, females - 3.1-3.5 m. The maximum parameters known to researchers were 3.8 m in length and 210 kg in weight.
This is a representative of the ghostly black cat sharks that live in the north of the Atlantic Ocean, can be found at a depth of 600-1900 m. The first description by specialists dates back to 1979.
Most often caught in nets off the coast of Japan, they have large eyes and are distinguished by a large head, small fins and tail.
The average length of a female is 76 cm, the largest known size value that is documented is 85 cm.
According to versions of some researchers, it is considered the deepest-sea fish in the world, since there is an officially known case of catching a specimen of this genus of the erugine family from the ship "John Eliot".
Research work was carried out on the ship, during which fish were brought on board from a depth of 8370 m. This happened near the trench in Puerto Rico.
In the works of many ichthyologists, Bathysaurus is considered the most deep-sea species of all those thoroughly studied to date.
Its habitat is located at a level of 3500 m, its body is elongated (almost 65 cm). There is also the name “fierce head”, which was given to him for his unattractiveness and threatening appearance.
It is also called pelican fish (Eurypharynxs pelecanoides), sac-eater, black eater, black crab-eater, belongs to the order of sac-mouths. Closest relatives are eels.
The specific structure of the body - a huge mouth and a short body - makes it possible to swallow prey many times larger than the size of the predator itself. Crookshanks have no scales, no ribs, and no air bladder.
The length of individuals varies from 4.8 cm (the smallest representative of the suborder) to 161 cm, the maximum recorded specimen reached 2 m.
In 1939, Wilbert Chapman made the discovery and description of what is probably one of the most interesting deep-sea fish. And only in 2004 the world saw photographs depicting macropinna, which surprised many, since the fish has a transparent head.
Distributed in the waters of the Pacific Ocean near the coasts of Canada, the USA and Japan at a depth of 500-800 m, the largest individuals live much lower.
The body length is about 15 cm, covered with large scales, and the fins are massive. The head is protected by a transparent dome-shaped shell; inside, in a separate chamber, there are cylindrical green eyes. Well-developed ocular muscles ensure the movement of the eyes from a vertical to a horizontal position, which makes it possible to productively monitor and capture prey.
Another name sounds like “monkfish”, obtained because of its terrifying appearance. They live in the eastern region of the Atlantic Ocean at a depth of up to 550 m. They are considered a commercial fish. Because of its white, dense meat, dishes with it are widely popular in the national cuisine of France.
Individual specimens up to 2 m and weighing 57.7 kg can be found, the average length is 1-1.5 m. The body is without scales, everything is covered with skin growths and tubercles. The monkfish is interesting because it has a rod-like growth on its head with a luminous bait at the end to attract prey; its luminescence is provided by specific bacteria that live with this monster in symbiosis.
It is found in almost all areas of the oceans in deep layers at a level of 500-5000 m. It has relatively small dimensions - weight 120 g and length up to 15-18 cm. It looks terrifying - a powerful head with 4 sharp fangs. The teeth are located on both jaws, resemble construction nails, and protrude forward.
The sabertooth is a predator that, when catching a prey, copes with it in almost a matter of seconds, biting it several times in a row with its needle-teeth. When the jaw is closed, the lower teeth fit into a sheath on either side of the brain.
It is interesting to know that in 2008, environmentalists put the saber tooth first on the list of the 10 most terrible animals on the planet.
It lives at a depth of 200-1000 m and has some resemblance to a stingray, as it has a large head and a small tail. Their shell is similar in strength to that of a turtle and serves as protection against sea predators.
Almost does not swim, moves along the bottom on fins adapted to environmental conditions, which over time have become similar to the limbs of land animals.
Soft-bodied whalefish (Flabby Whalefish)
Considered one of the deepest living species, its habitat is at 3500 m and below. The length reaches 40 cm, and in appearance they resemble the cetacean family.
Habitat: the lower layers of the waters of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans up to 1450-1570 m. It has a snake-like body of dark brown color up to 2 m long.
The name was obtained due to the presence of 6 skin folds - gill slits. The hunt is almost like that of snakes - the shark bends its body and makes a lightning-fast leap forward towards the victim. Strong, long jaws allow you to reliably squeeze prey, as several rows of sharp teeth help hold it.
It is probably true that it is considered the most bizarre of the deep-sea specimens, as it has an unusual body shape.
Lives within 600-1200 m in the area of Tasmania and Australia. A distinctive feature is the absence of an air bubble and a gloomy “facial expression”.
Specimens are rare, indicating possible extinction in the near future.
Common chauliod (Chauliodus sloani)
Widely represented in ocean waters at depths of up to 4000 m, it has a terrifying appearance, but a small body up to 35 cm. The structure of the body allows it to hunt fairly large fish and crustaceans, which in size can reach almost 63% of the length of the predator itself.
These amazing deep sea fish
These amazing deep sea fish
Strange appearance
The deeper we go, the fewer fish there will be, the fewer good swimmers, and the smaller their size. But their appearance will become more and more surprising - their bodies will become more and more loose and gelatinous, flickering in the dark with luminous organs - photophores.
What fish live in deep-sea depressions?
To date, only 7 species of fish have been found in deep-sea trenches: three species of bugs and four species of sea slugs. The record for depth of capture belongs to abyssobrotule, caught in the Puerto Rico Trench at a depth of 8370 meters, and pseudoliparis - Pseudoliparis, caught 7800 meters from the surface. There is virtually no data on the life of these fish, but as far as one can judge from their appearance, these small, sluggish creatures feed on bottom crustaceans and possibly the remains of other animals. This is what it looks like paraliparis - Paraliparis, living at a depth of 200 - 2,000 m.
It is likely that fish can be found at the bottom of deeper depressions. Thus, during the dive of the Trieste bathysphere into the Mariana Trench at a depth of about 10,000 meters, scientists managed to photograph some kind of flounder-like creature, but further analysis of the images did not clearly confirm that this object was a fish. In any case, there are few fish at these depths. Scientists have not yet discovered giant octopuses or squids capable of swallowing an entire ship.
Giant extinct armored fish
Armored fish that lived in the Jurassic period reached a length of more than 5 m, they lived in fresh water.
Coelacanths appeared 60 million years ago
The famous species of deep-sea fish, coelacanths (lobe-finned fish), have existed for 60 million years.
Side lights
The “flashlights” themselves can be small or large, single or located in “constellations” over the entire surface of the body. They can be round or oblong, like luminous stripes. Some fish resemble ships with rows of luminous portholes, and in predators they are often located at the ends of long antennae - fishing rods. Many deep-sea fish, such as anglerfish, glowing anchovies, hatchetfish, photostom, there are luminous organs - photofluoride, which serve to attract victims or to camouflage themselves from predators. In females melanocete, like the females of other deep-sea anglerfish (of which there are 120 known species), a “fishing rod” grows on the head. It ends with a shiny esque. By waving a “fishing rod”, the melanocetus lures fish towards itself and directs them directly into its mouth.
In luminous anchovies, photofluoras are located on the tail and body around the eyes. The downward light from the ventral photophores blurs the outlines of these small fish against the background of weak light coming from above and makes them invisible from below.
The hatchet photophores are found along the abdomen on both sides and on the underside of the body and also emit a greenish light downwards. Their lateral photophores resemble portholes.
The most famous of the deep sea fish- This is an anglerfish. Anglerfishes originate from Perciformes. Almost 120 species of deep-sea anglerfish are known, about 10 of which are found in the North Pacific Ocean. Found in the Black Sea European anglerfish (Lophius piscatorius).
The deepest sea fish
It is believed that of all vertebrates, fish belonging to the genus live at the greatest depths Bassogigas (family Brotulidae). From the research vessel John Eliot managed to catch bassogigasa at a depth of 8000 m.
Armored fish lived in the Jurassic period
More than 5 m long, which lived in fresh water.
One-legged crawling
Norwegian scientists from the Institute of Marine Research in Bergen reported the discovery of an unknown creature living at a depth of about 2000 meters. This is a very brightly colored creature crawling along the bottom. Its length is no more than 30 centimeters. The creature has only one front “paw” (or something very similar to a paw) and a tail, and at the same time does not resemble any of the sea inhabitants known to scientists. They failed to catch the creature, but scientists were able to get a good look at it and photograph it many times.
Why do fish need flashlights?
In conditions of constant darkness, the ability to glow plays a huge role. For predators, this is the luring of prey by fishing fish. In anglerfish, the first ray of the spiny dorsal fin is shifted onto the head and turned into a rod, at the end of which there is a bait that serves to attract prey. In some fish, only the lower part of the body glows, making them less noticeable against the background of diffused overhead light. Perhaps this is how one becomes invisible ironfish, which has a fantastic appearance with a completely flat silvery bottom part that reflects light. But the main task of photophores is, of course, to designate individuals of one species.
Telescopic eyes
It is clear that with such developed luminescent organs, vision should be no worse. Indeed, many of these fish have very complex telescopic eyes. So, close to the iron fish Bathylychnops- a unique four-eyed fish, in which two main eyes are directed obliquely upward, and two additional ones are directed forward and downward, which allows it to obtain an almost circular image.
Many fish, especially giganturas and bathylepts, have telescopic eyes mounted on stalks, which allows them to perceive very weak light sources, such as radiation from other fish.
Blind deep sea fish
With a further increase in depth and the complete disappearance of signs of light, vision ceases to play an important role and the eyes gradually atrophy. Completely blind species appear. Many of these deep-sea creatures are passive, have flabby, gelatinous bodies, often lacking caudal fins. Having descended four kilometers into the water, you will see rattail grenadiers with “armored” heads and sensitive antennae, typhlonus, which most resemble a small airship, they do not have a tail fin, they are completely blind and hunt only at the expense of the lateral line, galateataum, which lures prey right into your mouth... And, of course, the most amazing Lasiognathus anglerfish, or Lasiognathus saccostoma(which, by the way, means “the ugliest among the uglies”). Pisces called Bombay ducks, - scaleless, large-mouthed, distinguished by a flabby consistency of a fatty body and a brownish-brown color. Ateleopus – gelatinous, covered with smooth slippery skin, it most closely resembles a huge half-meter tadpole. His head makes a great impression - not at all fishy, soft and translucent, covered with delicate slippery skin, it resembled something jelly-like. The small funnel-shaped and completely toothless mouth raised strong doubts about the ability of its owner to feed on fish and crustaceans.
Fish that can't swim
Sea bats (Ogcocephalidae) They only crawl along the bottom “on their bells” with the help of “arms and legs” - pectoral and ventral fins. They spend their entire lives lying on the bottom, passively waiting for prey. The family contains 7–8 genera and about 35 bottom species living in tropical and subtropical waters of the World Ocean. They are characterized by a huge disc-shaped flattened head and a short narrow body covered with bony tubercles or spines. They have a small mouth with small teeth and tiny gill openings. A short “rod” (illicium), which is crowned with a bait (eska), is retracted into a special vagina - a tube located just above the mouth. A hungry fish throws out illicium and lures prey by rotating the handle. The largest sea bats do not exceed 35 cm in length.
In the countries of Southeast Asia from disc bats (Halieutaea) make baby rattles. The abdominal cavity of the dried fish is cut out, the entrails are completely scraped out, and small stones are placed in their place; the incision is carefully sutured and the spines covering the body are ground off.
Only females have fishing rods
Lasiognathus males Lasiognathus saccostoma The larvae also differ from females in the absence of an “illicia” rod. During metamorphosis in males, the head and jaws are greatly reduced, the eyes remain large, and the olfactory organs are greatly enlarged. In females, the opposite is true: the head and jaws become greatly enlarged, and the olfactory and visual organs become smaller; in adulthood, “ladies” reach 7.5 cm. In addition, males have special teeth in the front of their mouths, merging at their bases and serving to capture microprey and attach to females.
When the male is ten times smaller than the female and grows together with her
Ability to self-fertilize
Alepisaurus potentially capable of self-fertilization: each individual produces eggs and sperm simultaneously. And during spawning, some individuals function as females, while others function as males. Alepisaurs are large, up to 2 m long, predatory fish that live in the pelagic zone of the open ocean. Translated from Latin it means “scaleless beast”, a characteristic inhabitant of open ocean waters.
Spawning of deep sea fish
...occurs at great depths. The developing eggs gradually rise upward, and the larvae, 2–3 mm long, hatch in the surface layer of 30–200 m, where they feed mainly on copepods and planktonic chaetognatha. By the beginning of metamorphosis, the juveniles manage to descend to a depth of over 1000 m. Apparently, their immersion occurs quickly, since females at the metamorphosis stage are found in a layer of 2 - 2.5 thousand m, and males at the same stage - at a depth of 2 thousand m. In the layer of 1500 - 2000 m, both sexes live, having undergone metamorphosis and reached maturity, but sometimes adult individuals are found at shallower depths.
Adult females feed mainly on deep-sea bathypelagic fish, crustaceans and, less commonly, cephalopods, while adult males, like larvae, feed on copepods and chaetognaths. The vertical migrations of deep-sea anglerfish associated with individual development are explained by the fact that only in the near-surface layer can their sedentary and numerous larvae find enough food to accumulate reserves for the upcoming metamorphosis. Huge losses due to the consumption of eggs and larvae by predators are compensated by angler fish by very high fertility. Their eggs are small (with a diameter of no more than 0.5 - 0.7 mm), their transparent larvae resemble tiny balloons, due to the fact that they are dressed in a skin cover inflated with gelatinous tissue. This fabric increases the buoyancy and size of the larvae, which, along with transparency, protects them from small predators.
Hunting with a vacuum
Interesting to hunt sticktail(Stylophorus chordatus)- a bizarre fish with telescopic eyes and two long tail rays that form an elastic rod that is longer than the fish itself. Waiting for the appearance of prey (small crustaceans), the sticktail slowly drifts in a vertical position. When the crustacean is nearby, the fish sharply pushes its tubular mouth forward, increasing the volume of the oral cavity by almost 40 times, and the crustacean is instantly drawn into this vacuum trap.
Deep sea predators
In the water column of medium depths there are many fast swimmers, especially among predators. They pierce the water column, rising to the surface, and there, while chasing flies, they sometimes jump into the air. This daggerteeth(For example, Anotopterus nikparini), alepisaurs, godwit, rexia. All of them have powerful teeth and a long, slender body, which allows them to chase prey and easily escape from their pursuers. But all the same, when you see these swift hunters, their “deepness” is easily guessed by the same characteristic flabbiness of their bodies. However, this does not prevent them from attacking such strong fish as salmon and leaving characteristic cut wounds with their powerful jaws. Rexias seem to sometimes hunt cooperatively. They tear their prey into pieces, and then parts of the same victim are found in the stomachs of different predators caught in the same trawl.
Many of these deep-sea hunters have a very striking, memorable appearance. Thus, alepisaurs are “decorated” with a huge flag-shaped fin and, with a length of one and a half meters, weigh only about 5 kilograms, their body is so thin.
Scary teeth of the underwater world
The large-headed daggertooth (Anotopterus nikparini) is a large (up to 1.5 m long), not numerous inhabitant of medium depths of 500-2200 m, presumably found at depths of up to 4100 m, although its juveniles rise to a depth of 20 m. It is widespread in its subtropical and temperate areas of the Pacific Ocean, in the summer months it penetrates north to the Bering Sea.
The elongated, serpentine body and large head with huge beak-shaped jaws make the appearance of this fish so unique that it is difficult to confuse it with anyone else. A characteristic feature of the external structure of the daggertooth is its huge mouth - the length of the jaws is about three-quarters of the length of the head. Moreover, the size and shape of the teeth on different jaws of the daggertooth differ significantly: on the upper ones they are powerful, saber-shaped, reaching 16 mm in large specimens; on the bottom - small, subulate, directed backward and not exceeding 5–6 mm.
Research carried out in the last decade by scientists from different countries has shown that the daggertooth is an active predator. As a rule, he hunts schooling pelagic fish such as saury, herring and Pacific salmon - pink salmon, sockeye salmon and masu salmon. Based on data on the shape, location and direction of cuts on the victims' bodies (mainly from the back to the lower part of the body), scientists believe that the daggertooth attacks primarily from below. Most likely, it waits for its prey, hanging head up in the water. In this case, better camouflage is provided and the predator can get as close to the prey as possible. When attacking, two options are possible: a direct throw vertically upward and a throw with a short pursuit of the victim. It is unlikely that the daggertooth, with its not very muscular body and poorly developed tail, could pursue such good swimmers as salmon for a long time.
Of particular interest is the question of how the daggertooth manages to cause such serious damage to such large fish as Pacific salmon. Having studied the structure of the daggertooth’s teeth, scientists came to the conclusion that the salmon themselves “help” it make cut wounds. An attacked fish actively tries to escape after the predator has managed to grab it. But the backward-directed awl-shaped teeth of the lower jaw firmly hold the prey. However, if she turns around the grip axis, freeing her body from the mandibular teeth of the predator, she immediately manages to escape, but at the same time the body is cut by the saber-shaped teeth of the daggertooth.
There's a refrigerator in the stomach
Alepisaurs, fast predators, have an interesting feature: food is digested in their intestines, and their stomach contains completely intact prey, captured at various depths. And thanks to this toothy fishing gear, scientists have described many new species.
Angler swallows whole
Real deep-sea hunters resemble monstrous creatures frozen in the darkness of the bottom layers with huge teeth and weak muscles. They are passively drawn by slow deep-sea currents, or they simply lie on the bottom. With their weak muscles, they cannot tear pieces out of their prey, so they do it easier - swallow it whole... even if it is larger than the hunter in size. This is how anglers hunt - fish with a lonely mouth to which they forgot to attach a body. And this waterfowl head, baring its palisade of teeth, waves in front of itself a tendril with a luminous light at the end.
Anglerfish are small in size, reaching only 20 centimeters in length. The largest species of anglerfish, for example ceraria, reach almost half a meter, others - melanocete or Borofrin have outstanding appearance .
Sometimes anglerfish attack such large fish that an attempt to swallow them sometimes leads to the death of the hunter himself. So, once a 10-centimeter anglerfish was caught, choking on a 40-centimeter longtail.
While sorting out the catch from a deep-sea trawling in the western Pacific, scientists noticed the tightly stuffed belly of a tiny 6-centimeter anglerfish, from which seven freshly swallowed victims were extracted, including a 16-centimeter fish! Perhaps the gluttony was a consequence of his short association with the trawl captives.
Like a mitten, it stretches over the prey
Crookshanks(Pseudoscopelus) has an amazing ability to frequently swallow living creatures larger than its own size. This is a scaleless fish, about 30 cm long, with flaccid muscles and a huge mouth armed with huge teeth. Its jaws, body and stomach can stretch greatly, allowing it to swallow large prey. Some crabbills have the ability to glow. Previously, they were considered quite rare species, and only recently it was discovered that they are readily eaten by marlin and tuna, which descend to these depths to feed.
However, many of them can wholeheartedly swallow a victim larger than themselves. For example, a 14-centimeter haulilod is placed in the stomach of an 8-centimeter gigantura.
New discoveries of deep-sea fish
Last year, the Tangaroa explored the Tasman Sea for four weeks, catching 500 species of fish and 1,300 species of invertebrates.
Among other things, the discovery included a fossilized tooth from a megalodon, an extinct shark that was twice the size of a modern great white shark.
The expedition discovered strange and wonderful sea creatures, such as fish with a tongue covered with teeth, or teeth that rotate on hinges to absorb large prey. Or, say, a fish has been caught whose elongated head, like a metal detector, serves to detect electrical impulses produced by prey hiding at the bottom of the sea.
The researchers were greatly impressed by sabertooths - fish with two sharp teeth that protrude from the lower jaw and go into special cavities located on the head.
Among the newly discovered species is the sea mouse, which walks along the seabed. Her fins have almost turned into legs, and her head is like a unicorn.
Deep sea chimera
An unknown species of fish, which can be considered a living fossil, has been discovered in the deep-sea depressions of the Atlantic Ocean near Rio de Janeiro. Named Hydrolagus by Brazilian scientists matallanasi, this fish belonging to subspecies of chimeras, has remained virtually unchanged over the past 150 million years.
Along with sharks and rays, chimeras belong to the cartilaginous order, but they are the most primitive and can well be considered living fossils, since their ancestors appeared on Earth 350 million years ago. They were living witnesses to all the cataclysms on the planet and roamed the ocean a hundred million years before the first dinosaurs appeared on Earth."
Fish up to 40 centimeters long live at great depths, in giant depressions up to 700-800 meters deep, so until now they could not be discovered. Her skin is equipped with sensitive nerve endings, with which she detects the slightest movement in absolute darkness. Despite its deep-sea habitat, the chimera is not blind; it has huge eyes.
What are tactile hairs for?
Some deep-sea fish have tactile hairs growing on their chins or near their mouths. As soon as a careless victim touches them, he finds himself in the jaws of a predator.
When lifting deep-sea fish to the top
Deep-sea fish withstand enormous water pressure at the bottom of the ocean, and it is such that fish living in the upper layers of water would be crushed. When relatively deep-sea perciformes are lifted, their swim bladder turns outward due to a drop in pressure. First of all, the swim bladder helps them remain at a constant depth and adapt to the pressure of water on the body. Deep-sea fish constantly pump gas into it to prevent the bubble from collapsing from external pressure. To float, the gas from the swim bladder must be released, otherwise, when the water pressure decreases, it will expand greatly. However, gas is released slowly from the swim bladder.
One of the features of real deep-sea fish is precisely its absence. When they rise up, they die, but without visible changes.
1. Angler / Fish Angler / Monkfish / European Angler / Angler Fish
This deep-sea monster can easily become the nightmare of any diver and is rightfully considered the ugliest fish on planet Earth.
As if ashamed of their ugliness, anglerfish live in the depths of the sea, where the sun's rays do not penetrate.
There are 200 species of anglerfish, which are widely distributed in the cold waters of the Atlantic and Antarctic oceans. The depths at which these creatures live are truly amazing: in 2006, a female monkfish was discovered in the Mediterranean Ocean at a depth of 1.86 km.
Fishing fish spend most of their lives at the very bottom, where they bury themselves in silt or sand.
Due to their deep-sea habitat, the skin of these fish is dark gray or dark brown, which would make them inconspicuous if not for the huge flat head studded with spines and a giant mouth opening. The roof of the mouth and jaws have several rows of razor-sharp, inward-curved teeth.
Some angler fish can reach 2 meters in length and weigh up to 28 kilograms.
On the head of female specimens there is a small appendage with a fleshy two-blade appendage (rod), which behaves like a float and begins to fluoresce at great depths, which is why this fish received such an unusual name. The rod, as a rule, is 4 times longer than the fish itself, and the fleshy appendage, filled with mucus, in which bacteria that emit light live, is located directly in front of the predator’s mouth. The angler fish's mouth is truly gigantic compared to the rest of its body, and combined with its soft, elastic body, this 'baby' fish can wholeheartedly swallow prey that is twice its size.
That. It turns out that this monster, if desired, can easily swallow an adult!
A female fishing fish can harbor up to 10 partners on her body throughout her life, but most often their number is limited to 5-6.
To better imagine how this process happens, look at this short comic:
Spawning takes place at great depths, but the eggs are lighter than water and float to its surface. Here they hatch into larvae, which begin to feed intensively, grow quickly and gradually drown until they return to their homeland - the seabed.
The monkfish is extremely aggressive and any person swimming too close to it will be immediately attacked. The bites of this fish are very deep and painful, so do not approach this monster under any circumstances.
In Italy, the meat of this monster is eaten.
2. Viperfish / Sea viper / Deep sea viper / Viperfish
An indigenous inhabitant of the mesopelagic, the deep-sea viper can be found in tropical and temperate regions of the World Ocean at depths from 80 to 1600 meters.
The viper fish belongs to the Chauliodontidae family, all members of which are excellent freaks and bloodthirsty predators.
Individuals living closer to the surface are pitch black, and their deeper-sea counterparts are completely transparent, like most inhabitants of the depths, where the sun's rays do not penetrate.
Viper fish lure prey using a special luminous organ - a photophore, which is located along their dorsal fin.
This fish has simply gigantic eyes, in comparison with the size of its body, thanks to which it can see well even in the pitch darkness of the sea depths. The mouth is armed with huge sharp teeth protruding several centimeters from the mouth.
As a rule, the prey of the deep-sea viper are fish that are two or even three times larger than themselves. The predator, with lightning speed, grabs the victim's muzzle with a death grip with its teeth-sabers, and waits until the fish, struggling in agony, is exhausted, after which, grabbing it with its teeth, it begins to literally put itself on it until it swallows it whole.
After a hearty meal, the deep-sea viper looks like an inflated balloon bristling with sharp teeth.
The fish is stupid and aggressive to the point of disgrace. Oceanographer Stanley Dzhimnirski said that in 2006, while diving in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, he witnessed how a viper fish attacked a humpback whale, but due to its modest size, it could not defeat the gigantic mammal, which simply - simply ignored all the attacks of the brainless fish.
3. Alepisaurus / Alepisaurus
The large, toothy creatures, which carry the legacy of prehistoric times into the present day, can reach a length of two meters and weigh more than 8 kg.
The fish is extremely smart and is caught in fishing nets very rarely, and, according to fishermen, it is simply impossible to catch an alepisaurus with a hook.
Lives mainly in open ocean waters.
This species was first described in 1741 by one of the participants in the Second Kamchatka Expedition, Georg Wilhelm Steller, who discovered a sea monster washed up on the shore of one of the Aleutian islands.
4. Saberfish / Saberfish / Fangtooths
The saberfish or horned fish is another monster that lives in the ocean depths.
Despite its formidable appearance, this fish is truly miniature in size, reaching a length of only 15.24 cm.
The sabertooth has a short body, a large head and a huge mouth, with powerful jaws lined with sharp fangs.
Sabertooth fry are strikingly different from adult individuals - they have a lighter color, a different body structure and a head crowned with long spines. Adults range in color from jet black to dark brown.
The sabertooth fish is one of the deepest-sea fish in our world, which feels comfortable at depths of over 4,875 meters, where they are subject to pressure of over 425 atm.
These tiny predators attack anything that moves and are capable of swallowing whole prey that is two to three times their size. Some scientists suggest that the extreme aggressiveness of saber-tooths is a hereditary reflex developed as a result of extreme food shortages at such depths.
Sabertooth fish live in temperate and tropical oceanic regions, including waters off the coast of Australia.
5. Dragonfish / Sea dragon / Grammatostomias flagellibarba
The deep sea dragon fish is a ruthless predator that attacks anything that can be eaten. The aggression of this fish does not fit at all with its size - the body length of the sea dragon is only 15.24 cm.
The miniature monster has a large head and a large mouth, lined with sharp, fang-like teeth.
The dragon fish has a long whisker on its chin, at the end of which there is a photophore that acts as a fishing bait. Blinking and waving it back and forth in front of its toothy mouth, the predator waits until the unsuspecting prey swims close enough to it, after which, with a lightning-fast movement, it slams its powerful jaws on its head if the prey is large enough, otherwise it simply swallows it entirely.
In addition, like most deep-sea fish, the body and head of the dragon fish are dotted with photophores, which serve for communication with other representatives of its species (for example, during the mating period).
Sea dragons can be found in tropical regions of the World Ocean at depths of 1,500 meters.
6. Largemouth / Eurypharynx pelecanoides
First place in the category of the strangest and most clumsy-looking creature on planet Earth is awarded to a representative of the order of sacs - the largemouth, whose mouth looks truly gigantic in comparison with the rest of the body.
Most of the largemouth skull bones were reduced or simply disappeared due to their uselessness. As a result, it is impossible to determine what genus of fish the largemouth belongs to. Only the appearance of the fry, similar to eels, hints at the relationship of these two species.
During hunting, the lower jaw of the largemouth folds down and takes the shape of a net, into which prey that is several times larger than the hunter can easily be placed.
Many explorers of the deep sea have noticed that the largemouth, carrying prey in its mouth, looks like a flabby pelican. That is why this sea creature is often called the pelican eel.
The largemouth stomach is also adapted to receiving large foods and is capable of stretching.
Another distinctive feature of this inhabitant of the deep sea is its long, whip-like tail. Often the tails of largemouths caught in fishing nets were tangled into many knots.
Largemouths grow up to 2 meters in length and live at depths from 915 to 1830 meters.
7. Atlantic giant squid / Architeuthis dux
The Atlantic giant squid (Architeuthis dux) of the giant squid family, which is nicknamed the 'kraken', is the largest invertebrate in the world.
An adult female giant squid can reach 18 meters in length and weigh more than 900 kg.
Almost nothing is known about these mysterious sea monsters, because... They were only seen alive a couple of times. The study of sea 'krakens' is limited exclusively to the dissection of their half-decomposed corpses washed ashore.
Giant squids are carnivorous and eat whatever they can catch. During World War II, many surviving crew members of sunken ships told stories of giant sea monsters that dragged their shipmates under the water. In addition, these creatures are credited with attacks on submarines and small ships. Confirmation of this has never been found, which does not exclude the possibility that hungry deep-sea creatures rise to the surface in search of food.
The Atlantic squid is armed with eight long tentacles (up to 5 meters) with suction cups with which it holds its prey and two powerful jaws that form a sharp beak that can easily pierce the skull of a white shark.
The sworn enemies of these monsters are sperm whales, whose strength and mass the ‘krakens’ have nothing to oppose. This can be confirmed by the fact that the remains of giant squid are often found in the stomachs of dead sperm whales.
Representatives of this species of giant squid live mainly in temperate and subtropical zones of the Atlantic Ocean at depths of up to 1100 meters.
8. Giant isopod / Giant isopod / Bathynomus giganteus
One of the largest members of the crustacean family, the giant isopod (Bathynomus giganteus), also known as the giant isopod, reaches a length of 45 cm and weighs up to 2 kg.
The closest relative of this animal, not far removed from its prehistoric ancestors, is considered to be the woodlice.
When threatened, the giant isopod curls up into a ball, protected by a tough, calcareous exoskeleton of overlapping segments covering its back.
The giant isopod has 7 pairs of legs, the first of which, at a certain stage of evolutionary development, turned into jaws, used for capturing, crushing and feeding food into the mouth, equipped with four jaws.
These giants live in sea water at a depth of over 600 meters.
9. Sea Coffin / Coffin Fish / Sea Toad / B.melanostomus
The soft spherical body and short tail of this inhabitant of the ocean depths are covered with many small poisonous spines, which pose a serious danger even to humans.
The length of an adult sea toad does not exceed 12 cm.
The elastic skin allows this type of fish to swell, thereby more than doubling in volume.
The sea toad belongs to the suborder of anglerfish and has a small, mobile photophore on its snout.
These fish spend most of their lives buried in the mud, only occasionally sticking their snout out of it, luring prey with a luminescent photophore.
Sea toads live in the continental regions of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans at depths of up to 2000 meters.
10. Hellish Vampire / Vampyroteuthis infernalis
The hellvampire is a relict squid and the only member of the order Vampyromorphida.
Its jelly-like body, studded with photophores, makes it look more like a jellyfish than a squid.
He has the largest eyes among animals, in comparison with the rest of the body proportions. They are located on the sides, have a spherical shape and can reach a diameter of 25 cm.
Typically, the length of an adult hellish vampire does not exceed 15 cm, but there are also 30 cm specimens.
Photophores serve for intraspecific communication, defense and attack. Thanks to them, the hellish vampire is able to generate light pulses lasting from hundredths of a second to several minutes. In addition, it can control the brightness and size of color spots.
The hellish vampire is able to change the color of his body and eyes. Depending on the lighting, the eyes can be blue or red, and the body can be velvety black, red, purple or brown.
The blood of the Hell Vampire contains the pigment hemocyanin, which contains copper, which gives it a bluish tint.
Metabolism in his body proceeds so slowly that he needs a minimal amount of food and oxygen to live. Thanks to this, the hellish vampire manages to comfortably survive at depths of over 1000 m.
This animal is capable of developing incredible speeds, reaching 30 cm/s.
11. Long-nosed chimera / Harriotta raleighana
In the lane from Greek "chimera" - monster
A distinctive feature of this sea creature, belonging to the order Chimaeriformes, is its long nose, which has ideal hydrodynamic properties. The long-nosed chimera is one of the fastest underwater creatures, the maximum speed of which has not yet been established.
Large round eyes allow the chimera to see well even where the sun's rays practically do not penetrate.
Longnose chimaeras are considered distant relatives of sharks, which is why they are often called 'ghost sharks' in South Africa.
They live in ocean waters with a temperate climate at depths from 200 to 2600 meters.
The poisonous spine located on the dorsal fin can kill a person, although this is unlikely to ever happen at a depth of 2600 meters.
12. Black Crookshanks / Chiasmodon niger
The chiasmodon genus includes five species of the most disgusting creatures, each of which could easily become an adornment to any low-budget horror film.
The most common member of this marine 'Adams family' is the black crook.
The length of these monsters is only 15-25 cm, but thanks to their wide mouth, crowned with large movable fangs, they can easily swallow a half-meter fish.
In order not to become a victim himself during the hunt, the crooked swallower swallows prey, starting from the tail, then, intercepting it with his teeth, pulls it into his stomach, which is elastic and capable of accommodating everything that fits into the mouth of this sea monster.
The crookfish is helped to find prey in pitch darkness by the lateral line organ system, which allows it to detect water vibrations.
In addition, to attract prey and communicate with potential mating partners, there are photophores on its body.
Black crabbills live in tropical and subtropical waters of the World Ocean at a depth of 700-2700 meters.
13. Frilled shark / Chlamydoselachus anguineus
The frilled shark is one of two species of the family Chlamydoselachidae, found primarily in the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
It lives at a depth of 50 to 200 meters, but can dive to 2000 meters if desired.
Most often, scientists call this animal a living fossil, because. it has undergone virtually no changes during its evolutionary development and is the brightest representative of a species that originated in the prehistoric period.
Frilled sharks reach up to two meters in length, with females being larger than males, and having a snake-like, dark-colored body that makes them look like eels. Their gill openings are decorated with skin frills, from which these sharks get their name.
This dangerous predator takes full advantage of all the advantages of its snake body during the hunt. With a lightning-fast movement, he pounces on the victim and coils around it like a snake. Flexible jaws allow it to swallow prey that is several times larger than itself, and teeth that are sharp at the ends and curved inward completely eliminate the possibility of the victim escaping from a fatal grip.
Frilled sharks feed mainly on cephalopods, fish and other sharks.
These deep-sea animals hatch from eggs that are gestated by the female for 2-3.5 years, the longest gestation among vertebrates.
And in conclusion, I want to introduce you, although not from the sea, and not so scary in appearance, but still an extremely dangerous river hunter who does not even disdain human flesh.
Pacu
Pacu is a fish from the piranha family, which, like the dragon fish, attacks everything it sees, only its habitat is not the depths of the sea, but shallow river backwaters.
Pacu are much larger than piranhas - the weight of an adult can reach 30 kg. Extremely sharp teeth, somewhat similar to human ones, and powerful jaws make this pretty fish the most dangerous river predator in the world.
In order to provoke a pack to attack, it is enough to approach it at a distance of two meters.
The main habitat of these fish is concentrated in the waters of the Amazon.
Is it difficult for you to believe that such a ‘cute baby’ could cause you any harm? But in vain! Most recently, paku castrated two local fishermen in Papua New Guinea, who bled to death. For more than a month, this bloodthirsty creature single-handedly terrorized residents of nearby villages until it was caught by an experienced fisherman from England, Jeremy Wade.
Incredible facts
Perhaps we should stop looking for aliens on other planets, since there are enough people living in the ocean amazing and strange life forms, more like aliens.
4. Goblin Shark
The goblin shark is rarely seen on the surface as it primarily lives at depths from 270 to 1300 meters.
It is easily recognized by its elongated and flattened muzzle with retractable jaws with teeth sharp as fingernails. These sharks reach 3-4 meters in length, but can grow more than 6 meters.
5. Sea Spider
If you thought there were no spiders in the ocean, you were very mistaken. However, sea spiders have no relation to terrestrial spiders, despite their external similarity. These are not spiders or even arachnids, but chelicerates - a subtype arthropods.
They live in the seas, especially in the Mediterranean and Caribbean, as well as in the Arctic and Southern oceans. There is more 1300 species of sea spiders, ranging in size from 1-10 mm to 90 cm.
6. Pompeii worm
Pompeian worms ( Alvinella pompejana) live in very hot water near hydrothermal vents in the Pacific Ocean and can withstand extreme temperature and pressure.
7. Drop fish
Drop fish ( Psychrolutes marcidus) although it is considered the ugliest creature in the world, looks like a completely normal fish, being in its normal environment at a depth of 600-1200 meters.
At this depth, the pressure is 120 times higher than at the surface. Unlike other fish, it does not have a swim bladder, skeleton or muscles, which allows it to swim at depth. If you raise it to the surface, it acquires saggy and sad looking.
Sea creatures
8. Bobbit's polychaete worm
The Australian purple polychaete worm, also known as the Bobbitt worm, can grow up to 3 meters long.
It hunts its prey in the most diabolical way, burrowing into the seabed, leaving a small part of its body on the surface and waiting for the victim. Using its antennae, the worm senses passing prey, quickly captures it with its strong muscular throat, and splits a fish in two.
9. Jellyfish "flower cap"
These jellyfish, with beautiful colorful tentacles extending from a translucent umbrella, feed on small fish and sometimes each other.
They can increase or decrease in size depending on food supplies.
10. Rag-picking seahorse
These slow-moving fish are related to seahorses. They rely mainly on their seaweed-like appendages to help rag pickers camouflage and protect themselves from predators.
11. Siphonophores
Siphonophores are animal colonies, consisting of individual representatives called zooids, connected by a common trunk. Such a colony can reach several meters in length.
12. Corona jellyfish
This atoll jellyfish or crown jellyfish is very similar to a UFO, because, like most jellyfish, it does not have a digestive, respiratory, circulatory or central nervous system.
She lives in the deep 1000 - 4000 meters where sunlight does not penetrate. Being scared, this jellyfish "connects" bioluminescent blue lights, which spin like flashing lights on a police car.
13. Pike blenny
These fish usually hide inside shells on the seabed. These are small (up to 30 cm), but fierce fish with a large mouth and aggressive behavior.
When two pike blennies fight for territory, they press their widened mouths against each other as if in a kiss. This helps them determine who is bigger.
14. Glass squid
There is about 60 types of glass squid or crachniid. Most of them, as the name suggests, are transparent, which helps them camouflage.
15. Pteropods
Pteropods are small sea snails which swim in the water on two wing-shaped legs. They are born male, but become female when they reach a large size.
16. Sea cucumber
These floating deep sea cucumbers are transparent, so you can see their digestive system.
Deep sea inhabitants
17. Squid Worm
Scientists first discovered this deep-sea creature in 2007. It was nicknamed the squid worm because of its 10 tentacle-like appendages on the head, each of which is longer than the entire body. He uses them to collect food.
18. Lobster's menacing claws
This type of lobster Dinochelus ausubeli, which means "formidable claws", was discovered at depth 300 meters in the Philippines in 2007. It reaches a length of only 3 cm, and its toothy claws are its only frightening feature.
19. Sea anemone Venus flytrap
This sea anemone Actinoscyphia aurelia, was named after Venus flytrap plants due to their similar shape and feeding method. She folds her disk in half, trapping food and digesting it with her mouth located in the center of the disk.