The anglerfish are

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

in the order Lophiiformes (). Both the order's

common Common may refer to: As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin. Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Com ...

and

scientific name In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

comes from the characteristic mode of

predation Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common List of feeding behaviours, feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation ...

, in which a modified dorsal fin ray acts as a lure for prey (akin to a human angler, and likened to a crest or "'' lophos''"). The modified fin ray, with the very tip being the esca and the length of the structure the illicium, is adapted to attract specific prey items across the families of anglerfish by using different luring methods. Anglerfish occur worldwide. The majority are bottom-dwellers, being

demersal fish Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They oc ...

, while the aberrant deep-sea anglerfish are

pelagic The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean and can be further divided into regions by depth. The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or water column between the sur ...

, (mostly) living high in the water column. Some live in the

deep sea The deep sea is broadly defined as the ocean depth where light begins to fade, at an approximate depth of or the point of transition from continental shelves to continental slopes. Conditions within the deep sea are a combination of low tempe ...

(such as the deep-sea anglerfish and sea toads), while others live in shallower waters, such as the frogfishes and some batfishes. Anglerfish are notable for their

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...

, which is sometimes extremely pronounced; the males may be several

orders of magnitude In a ratio scale based on powers of ten, the order of magnitude is a measure of the nearness of two figures. Two numbers are "within an order of magnitude" of each other if their ratio is between 1/10 and 10. In other words, the two numbers are wi ...

smaller in

mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

than females. This dimorphism has enabled a unique reproductive method in the deep-sea anglerfish; sexual parasitism is the attachment of male to the much larger female, sometimes fusing together as an example of natural parabiosis.

Taxonomy

Anglerfish were first grouped in the family of Acanthopterygians with " pediculate pectoral in" () by Cuvier in the 1829 edition of

Le Règne Animal ''Le Règne Animal'' () is the most famous work of the French naturalist Georges Cuvier. It sets out to describe the natural structure of the whole of the animal, animal kingdom based on comparative anatomy, and its natural history. Cuvier divid ...

; being characterized by possessing "a sort of arm supporting their pectorals, formed by an elongated carpal bone". Cuvier placed the genera ''

Lophius Members of the genus ''Lophius'', also sometimes called monkfish, fishing-frogs, frog-fish, and sea-devils, are various species of lophiid anglerfishes found in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. ''Lophius'' is known as the "monk" or "monkfish" to ...

'' (incl. ''

Lophius piscatorius ''Lophius piscatorius'', commonly known as the anglerfish, frog fish, fishing frog, monk, European angler, common monkfish, sea devil, or devil fish, is a monkfish in the family Lophiidae. It is found in coastal waters of the northeast Atlantic ...

''), ''Chironectes''/'' Antennarius'' (incl. various subspecies of '' Lophius histrio''), '' Malthe'' (incl. '' Lophius vespertilio''), and '' Batrachus'' within this family. Translations of this work into English and Latin renderred the family name as "Pectorales Pediculati"; which was eventually truncated into Pediculati or Pediculata ( pediculate fish), these names being used to classify anglerfish through 1926. Though this term saw use in publications as late as the 1970s, Pediculati has fallen out of use. The group Lophidia was conceived by

Samuel Garman Samuel Walton Garman (June 5, 1843 – September 30, 1927), or "Garmann" as he sometimes styled himself, was an American naturalist and zoologist. He became noted as an ichthyologist and herpetologist. Biography Garman was born in Indiana Co ...

in 1899; this group was subdivided into the Lophioids (incl. ''Lophius'', ''

Lophiomus ''Lophiomus'' is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family, Lophiidae, the goose fishes, monkfishes or anglers. The only species in the genus is ''Lophiomus setigerus'', the blackmouth angler, blackmouth goosefish, b ...

'', '' Melanocetus'', '' Dolopichthys'', '' Chaunax'', and '' Chaunacops'') and the Halieutoids (incl. ''Oncocephalus'', '' Halieutaea'', '' Halieutella'', '' Halieutichthys'', '' Halieutopsis'', '' Halicmetus'', '' Dibranchus'', '' Dibranchichthys'', and '' Malthopsis'') based on the orientation of the ilicium's base. By 1905, Lophiiformes came into use, at that time being a suborder of Pediculati.

Classification

Anglerfishes were classified by the 5th edition of ''

Fishes of the World ''Fishes of the World'' is a standard reference for the systematics of fishes. It was first written in 1976 by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011). Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of t ...

'' into 5 suborders and 18 families. * Suborder

Lophioidei Goosefishes, sometimes called anglers or monkfishes, are a family, the Lophiidae, of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes. The family includes 30 recognized species. These fishes are found in all the ...

Regan, 1912 ** Family Lophiidae Rafinesque, 1810 (Monkfishes and goosefishes) * Suborder Antennarioidei Regan, 1912 ** Family Antennariidae Jarocki 1822 (Frogfishes) * Suborder Chaunacoidei Pietsch & Grobecker, 1987 ** Family Chaunacidae Gill, 1863 (Sea toad) * Suborder Ogcocephaloidei Pietsch, 1984 ** Family Ogcocephalidae Gill, 1893 (Batfishes) * Suborder Ceratioidei Regan, 1912 ** Family Caulophrynidae Goode &

Bean A bean is the seed of some plants in the legume family (Fabaceae) used as a vegetable for human consumption or animal feed. The seeds are often preserved through drying (a ''pulse''), but fresh beans are also sold. Dried beans are traditi ...

, 1896 (Fanfins) ** Family Neoceratiidae Regan, 1926 (Spiny seadevils) ** Family Melanocetidae Gill, 1878 (Black seadevils) ** Family Himantolophidae Gill, 1861 (Footballfishes) ** Family Diceratiidae Regan & Trewavas, 1932 (Double anglers) ** Family Oneirodidae Gill, 1878 (Dreamers) ** Family Thaumatichthyidae Smith & Radcliffe, 1912 (Wolftrap anglers) ** Family Centrophrynidae Bertelsen, 1951 (Prickly seadevils) ** Family Ceratiidae Gill, 1861 (Warty seadevils) ** Family Gigantactinidae Boulenger, 1904 (Whipnose anglers) ** Family Linophrynidae Regan, 1925 (Leftvents) Alternatively, Lophiiformes may be treated as

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

within Acanthuriformes; a 2025 paper defines Lophioidei as equivalent to the prior conception of Lophiiformes (the one depicted above) and converts the suborders into infraorders (as seen below). Below are two

phylogenetic tree A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA. In ...

s; the left phylogeny elaborates on the relationships of the suborders within Lophiiformes as set out in Pietsch and Grobecker's 1987 ''Frogfishes of the World: Systematics, Zoogeography, and Behavioral Ecology'', while the right phylogeny is based on the 2025 study, where Maile '' et al'' combines the analysis of Ultra-Conserved Elements (UCE)s,

mitochondrial DNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA and mDNA) is the DNA located in the mitochondrion, mitochondria organelles in a eukaryotic cell that converts chemical energy from food into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is a small portion of the D ...

, and morphological evidence;

Phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the evolutionary history of life using observable characteristics of organisms (or genes), which is known as phylogenetic inference. It infers the relationship among organisms based on empirical dat ...

studies have consistently recovered the Lophiiformes as sister-group to the Tetraodontiformes, with both within the larger clade Acanthuriformes as of 2025. The Lophiiformes and Tetraodontiformes are united by several derived morphological features separating them from other Acanthuriformes, including restricted gill openings, along with the absence of multiple skeletal elements, such as spines supporting the anal fin,

rib In vertebrate anatomy, ribs () are the long curved bones which form the rib cage, part of the axial skeleton. In most tetrapods, ribs surround the thoracic cavity, enabling the lungs to expand and thus facilitate breathing by expanding the ...

s, nasals, and basisphenoid.

Evolution

The earliest fossils of anglerfish are from the

Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...

, excavated from the Monte Bolca formation of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and these already show evidence of diversification into the modern families that make up the order. Given this, and their close relationship to the Tetraodontiformes which are known from

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

fossils, they likely originated during the Cretaceous. A 2010 mitochondrial genome phylogenetic study suggested the anglerfishes diversified in a short period during the early to mid-Cretaceous, between 130 and 100 million years ago. A more recent

preprint In academic publishing, a preprint is a version of a scholarly or scientific paper that precedes formal peer review and publication in a peer-reviewed scholarly or scientific journal. The preprint may be available, often as a non-typeset versi ...

reduces this time to the

Late Cretaceous The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the more recent of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''cre ...

, between 92 and 61 million years ago. Other studies indicate that anglerfish only originated shortly after the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event as part of a massive adaptive radiation of percomorphs, although this clashes with the extensive diversity already known from the group by the Eocene. A 2024 study found that all anglerfish suborders most likely diverged from one another during the

and

Paleocene The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), ...

, but the multiple families of deep-sea anglerfishes ( Ceratioidei), as well as their trademark sexual parasitism, originated during the Eocene in a rapid radiation following the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum. Adaptations to different ranges of depths may have driven the evolution of anglerfish species and families in prehistory. Anglerfish appear in the

fossil record A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

as follows: ImageSize = width:1200 height:auto barincrement:15px PlotArea = left:10px bottom:50px top:10px right:10px Period = from:-59 till:10 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:5 start:-59 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:-59 TimeAxis = orientation:hor AlignBars = justify Colors = #legends id:CAR value:claret id:ANK value:rgb(0.4,0.3,0.196) id:HER value:teal id:HAD value:green id:OMN value:blue id:black value:black id:white value:white id:cenozoic value:rgb(0.54,0.54,0.258) id:paleogene value:rgb(0.99,0.6,0.32) id:paleocene value:rgb(0.99,0.65,0.37) id:eocene value:rgb(0.99,0.71,0.42) id:oligocene value:rgb(0.99,0.75,0.48) id:neogene value:rgb(0.999999,0.95,0.68) id:miocene value:rgb(0.999999,0.9,0.1) id:pliocene value:rgb(0.999999,0.999999,0.24) id:quaternary value:rgb(0.999999,0.999999,0.24) id:pleistocene value:rgb(0.97,0.98,0.68) id:holocene value:rgb(0.999,0.95,0.88) BarData= bar:NAM1 bar:NAM2 bar:NAM3 bar:NAM4 bar:NAM5 bar:NAM6 bar:NAM7 bar:NAM8 bar:NAM9 bar:NAM10 bar:NAM11 bar:NAM12 bar:space bar:period bar:space bar:era PlotData= align:center textcolor:black fontsize:M mark:(line,black) width:25 shift:(7,-4) PlotData= align:left fontsize:M mark:(line,white) width:5 anchor:till align:left color:eocene bar:NAM1 from: -55.8 till: 0 text:

color:eocene bar:NAM2 from: -55.8 till: 0 text: Brachionichthys color:eocene bar:NAM3 from: -55.8 till: 0 text: Antennarius color:eocene bar:NAM4 from: -48.6 till: 0 text: Ogcocephalus color:eocene bar:NAM5 from: -37.2 till: 0 text: Dibranchus color:eocene bar:NAM6 from: -37.2 till: 0 text: Chaunax color:miocene bar:NAM7 from: -11.63 till: 0 text: Oneirodes color:miocene bar:NAM8 from: -8.6 till: 0 text: Borophryne color:miocene bar:NAM9 from: -8.6 till: 0 text: Chaenophryne color:miocene bar:NAM10 from: -8.6 till: 0 text: Leptacanthichthys color:miocene bar:NAM11 from: -8.6 till: 0 text: Linophryne color:miocene bar:NAM12 from: -8.6 till: 0 text: Acentrophryne PlotData= align:center textcolor:black fontsize:M mark:(line,black) width:25 bar:period from: -59.0 till: -55.8 color:paleocene text:

from: -55.8 till: -33.9 color:eocene text:

from: -33.9 till: -23.03 color:oligocene text:

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...

from: -23.03 till: -5.332 color:miocene text:

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

from: -5.332 till: -2.588 color:pliocene text: Plio. from: -2.588 till: -0.0117 color:pleistocene text: Pleist. from: -0.0117 till: 0 color:holocene text: H. bar:era from: -59.0 till: -23.03 color:paleogene text:

Paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...

from: -23.03 till: -2.588 color:neogene text:

Neogene The Neogene ( ,) is a geologic period and system that spans 20.45 million years from the end of the Paleogene Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning of the present Quaternary Period million years ago. It is the second period of th ...

from: -2.588 till: 0 color:quaternary text: Q. TextData = pos:(600,20) text:"Time (in million years)"

Anatomy

Anglerfish are defined by gills that open behind the pectoral fins (as opposed to other fish whose pectorals lay behind the gill opening), depressible teeth that can hinge back, joints of the epiotic bone, the form of the pectoral fin radials, and the luring apparatus (see subsection). Anglerfish lengths can vary from , with a few species larger than . The largest members are the European monkfish ''

'' {{{Convert, 200, cm, ft, abbr=on SL, {{Convert, 57.7, kg, lbs), the deep-sea warty anglerfish '' Ceratias holboelli'' ({{Convert, 120, cm, ft, abbr=on TL), the giant frogfish '' Antennarius commerson'' ({{Convert, 45, cm, ft, abbr=on TL), and the giant triangular batfish '' Malthopsis gigas'' ({{Convert, 13.6, cm, ft, abbr=on).{{FishBase, genus=Ceratias, species=holboelli, id=4572 Many suborders are

sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...

, with the deep-sea anglerfish being the most extreme example; male ''C. holboelli'' can reach up to {{Convert, 16, cm, in long (SL), while females are commonly around {{Convert, 77, cm, ft TL, potentially weighing an

order of magnitude In a ratio scale based on powers of ten, the order of magnitude is a measure of the nearness of two figures. Two numbers are "within an order of magnitude" of each other if their ratio is between 1/10 and 10. In other words, the two numbers are ...

more than her mate.{{cite journal , last1=Pietsch , first1=Theodore W. , authorlink=Theodore Wells Pietsch III, title=Dimorphism, parasitism, and sex revisited: modes of reproduction among deep-sea ceratioid anglerfishes (Teleostei: Lophiiformes) , journal=Ichthyological Research , date=August 2005 , volume=52 , issue=3 , pages=207–236 , doi=10.1007/s10228-005-0286-2 , bibcode=2005IchtR..52..207P , url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10228-005-0286-2 , issn=1341-8998, access-date=1 March 2025, url-access=subscription Male ''

Photocorynus spiniceps ''Photocorynus'' is a monospecific genus of marine life, marine Actinopterygii, ray-finned fish belonging to the family leftvent, Linophrynidae, the leftvents. The only species in the genus is ''Photocorynus spiniceps''. ''Photocorynus'' was fi ...

'' were measured to be {{convert, 6.2, -, 7.3, mm, in, abbr=on at maturity, and were at one time claimed to be the smallest vertebrate known. However, due to not being free-living (being parasitic males) and the females being {{convert, 50.5, mm, in, abbr=on, they are now often excluded from the records. Sexual dimorphism is not as pronounced in other suborders; the Lophiid monkfish genus ''

Lophiodes ''Lophiodes'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Lophiidae, the goosefishes, monkfishes and anglers. It is one of four extant genera in the family Lophiidae. The fish in this genus are found in the Atlantic, Indian a ...

'' are quite similar in size between the genders (

Mean A mean is a quantity representing the "center" of a collection of numbers and is intermediate to the extreme values of the set of numbers. There are several kinds of means (or "measures of central tendency") in mathematics, especially in statist ...

for Males {{Convert, 113, -, 133, mm, in SL; Females {{Convert, 131, -, 171, mm, in SL),{{cite journal , last1=Pietsch , first1=Theodore W. , last2=Ross , first2=Steve W. , last3=Caruso , first3=John H. , last4=Saunders , first4=Miles G. , last5=Fisher , first5=Charles R. , title=In-Situ Observations of the Deep-sea Goosefish Sladenia shaefersi Caruso and Bullis (Lophiiformes: Lophiidae), with Evidence of Extreme Sexual Dimorphism , journal=Copeia , date=December 2013 , volume=2013 , issue=4 , pages=660–665 , doi=10.1643/CI-13-023 , url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261175650 , access-date=22 March 2025 and the same is true for ''Lophius'' itself (Males {{Convert, 68.50, -, 129.50, cm, ft; Females {{Convert, 93.50, -, 166.60, cm, ft). Anglerfish are generally

ambush predator Ambush predators or sit-and-wait predators are carnivorous animals that capture their prey via stealth, luring or by (typically instinctive) strategies utilizing an element of surprise. Unlike pursuit predators, who chase to capture prey u ...

s, with shallow-water species such as frogfish often camouflaging as rocks,

sponge Sponges or sea sponges are primarily marine invertebrates of the animal phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), a basal clade and a sister taxon of the diploblasts. They are sessile filter feeders that are bound to the seabed, and a ...

s or

seaweed Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of ''Rhodophyta'' (red), '' Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...

. To blend in with the featureless dark depths they inhabit, deep-sea anglerfish are dark colored, with tints ranging from grey to brown.{{Better source needed, date=March 2025, reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ( WP:NOTRS); 1911 Britannica and NatGeo are either outdated or overly generalizes anglerfish (the latter is aimed at educating children) In most species, a wide mouth extends all around the anterior (front) circumference of the head, and bands of inwardly inclined teeth line both jaws. The teeth can be depressed (swept back) so as to offer no impediment to prey gliding towards the stomach, but to still prevent its escape.{{EB1911, inline=y, wstitle=Angler, volume=2, page=15{{Better source needed, date=March 2025, reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ( WP:NOTRS); 1911 Britannica and NatGeo are either outdated or overly generalizes anglerfish (the latter is aimed at educating children) Anglerfish are able to distend both their jaw and stomach to enormous size, since their bones are thin and flexible, which allows them to swallow prey up to twice as large as their entire bodies.{{Better source needed, date=March 2025, reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ( WP:NOTRS); 1911 Britannica and NatGeo are either outdated or overly generalizes anglerfish (the latter is aimed at educating children)

Esca and illicium

{{Expand section, date=May 2025, these references on illicial muscles: All anglerfish are

carnivorous A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose nutrition and energy requirements are met by consumption of animal tissues (mainly mu ...

and are thus adapted for the capture of prey. A character shared by all anglerfish suborders is the presence of a "lure" or "bait", unambiguously referred to as the ''esca''. The esca is the tip of a fin ray, modified from the

anterior Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position pro ...

(foremost)

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...

; this fin-ray is often referred to as the " fishing rod" or " -line" and is scientifically termed the ''illicium''. The entire illicial apparatus consists of the illicial

pterygiophore A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine biology, marine environments, so the fins are not all Homology (biol ...

(the "base" of the structure), followed by a second short dorsal spine, and tipped with the bone of the illicium which ends with the esca proper; this appendage may slot into a groove that accommodates part or all of the illicial apparatus.{{rp, 33–40 Both the esca and illicium are used in tandem to lure prey.{{efn, {{cite journal , last=Miya , first=Masaki , author2=Pietsch, Theodore W , author3=Orr, James W , author4=Arnold, Rachel J , author5=Satoh, Takashi P , author6=Shedlock, Andrew M , author7=Ho, Hsuan-Ching , author8=Shimazaki, Mitsuomi , author9=Yabe, Mamoru , author10= Nishida, Mutsumi , title=Evolutionary history of anglerfishes (Teleostei: Lophiiformes): a mitogenomic perspective , journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology , date=1 January 2010 , volume=10 , issue=1 , pages=58 , doi=10.1186/1471-2148-10-58 , pmid=20178642 , pmc=2836326 , doi-access=free , bibcode=2010BMCEE..10...58M {{cite journal , last1=Derouen , first1=Valerie , last2=Ludt , first2=William B , last3=Ho , first3=Hsuan-Ching , last4=Chakrabarty , first4=Prosanta , title=Examining evolutionary relationships and shifts in depth preferences in batfishes (Lophiiformes: Ogcocephalidae) , journal=Mol Phylogenet Evol , date=March 2015 , volume=84 , pages=27–33 , doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2014.12.011 , pmid=25554525 , bibcode=2015MolPE..84...27D , url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25554525/{{cite journal , title=Fish That Fish for Fish-A Peculiar Location of "Fishing Motoneurons" in the Striated Frogfish Antennarius striatus , journal=J Comp Neurol , date=Oct 2024 , volume=532 , issue=10 , doi=10.1002/cne.25674 , pmid=39380323 , last1=Hagio , first1=Hanako , last2=Nishino , first2=Hirotaka , last3=Miyake , first3=Kenta , last4=Sato , first4=Nene , last5=Sawada , first5=Kei , last6=Nakayama , first6=Tomoya , last7=Yamamoto , first7=Naoyuki , pages=e25674 , doi-access=free {{cite journal , last1=Last , first1=Peter R , last2=Gledhill , first2=Daniel , title=A revision of the Australian handfishes (Lophiiformes: Brachionichthyidae), with descriptions of three new genera and nine new species , journal=Zootaxa , date=October 2009 , volume=2252 , doi=10.11646/zootaxa.2252.1.1 , url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237742706 , access-date=24 March 2025{{cite web , title=Science > Birds, Reptiles & Other Vertebrates > Fish > anglerfish fish , url=https://www.britannica.com/animal/anglerfish , website=britannica.com , publisher=Britannica , access-date=22 March 2025{{cite web , last1=Magbilang , first1=Lila , last2=Olson, first2=Danielle, title=Anglerfish Lure Prey Throughout the Ocean , url=https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/fish/anglerfish-lure-prey-throughout-ocean , website=ocean.si.edu , publisher=Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History , access-date=22 March 2025 The illicium's length is highly variable across species, from not being visible at all in some species, to around 4.9 times SL (over 4 times the length of the rest of the body) in '' Gigantactis macronema'' (body length {{convert, 354, mm, abbr=on).{{rp, 469 The illicial apparatus is most notable in the deep-sea anglerfish (Ceratioidei) as their esca contain bioluminescent bacteria, making them glow in the dark waters of the deeper pelagic zones.{{Cite journal, last1=Freed, first1=Lindsay L., last2=Easson, first2=Cole, last3=Baker, first3=Lydia J., last4=Fenolio, first4=Danté, last5=Sutton, first5=Tracey T., last6=Khan, first6=Yasmin, last7=Blackwelder, first7=Patricia, last8=Hendry, first8=Tory A., last9=Lopez, first9=Jose V., date=2019-10-01, title=Characterization of the microbiome and bioluminescent symbionts across life stages of Ceratioid Anglerfishes of the Gulf of Mexico, url= , journal=FEMS Microbiology Ecology, language=en, volume=95, issue=10, pages=fiz146, doi=10.1093/femsec/fiz146, issn=0168-6496, pmc=6778416, pmid=31504465{{Cite journal, last1=Baker, first1=Lydia J., last2=Freed, first2=Lindsay L., last3=Easson, first3=Cole G., last4=Lopez, first4=Jose V., last5=Fenolio, first5=Danté, last6=Sutton, first6=Tracey T., last7=Nyholm, first7=Spencer V., last8=Hendry, first8=Tory A., date=2019-10-01, title=Diverse deep-sea anglerfishes share a genetically reduced luminous symbiont that is acquired from the environment, journal=eLife, language=en, volume=8, pages=e47606, doi=10.7554/eLife.47606, issn=2050-084X, pmc=6773444, pmid=31571583 , doi-access=free In other species the esca possesses different luring mechanisms, such as emitting odoriferous chemicals that attract olfactory-driven prey (batfish, Ogcocephaloidei; possibly sea toads, Chaunacioidei), or by resembling prey attractive to small fish such as

shrimp A shrimp (: shrimp (American English, US) or shrimps (British English, UK)) is a crustacean with an elongated body and a primarily Aquatic locomotion, swimming mode of locomotion – typically Decapods belonging to the Caridea or Dendrobranchi ...

worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

(frogfish, Antennarioidei). When the prey is close enough, the anglerfish catches it using

suction feeding Aquatic feeding mechanisms face a special difficulty as compared to feeding on land, because the density of water is about the same as that of the prey, so the prey tends to be pushed away when the mouth is closed. This problem was first identifi ...

, elongated sharp teeth, or both.{{rp, 263 While sometimes reported to possess a bioluminescent esca, sea toads lack bioluminescent bacteria and do not actually possess this feature.{{cite web , last1=Mundy , first1=Bruce , title=The Mysterious Identity of the Bright-Red Sea Toad , url=https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/science-blog/mysterious-identity-bright-red-sea-toad , website=fisheries.noaa.gov , date=6 January 2021 , publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , access-date=22 March 2025{{cite web , title=An alluring fish: The deep-sea anglerfish is a couch potato's hero , url=https://annualreport.mbari.org/2021/story/the-deep-sea-anglerfish-is-a-couch-potatos-hero , website=annualreport.mbari.org , access-date=22 March 2025 In at least the triplewart seadevil, the illicium is moved back and forth by five distinct pairs of muscles: namely the shorter erector and depressor muscles that dictate movement of the illicial bone, along with inclinator, protractor, and retractor muscles that aid motion of the

.{{Cite journal , last1=Shimazaki , first1=Mitsuomi , last2=Nakaya , first2=Kazuhiro , date=2004-02-01 , title=Functional anatomy of the luring apparatus of the deep-sea ceratioid anglerfish Cryptopsaras couesii (Lophiiformes: Ceratiidae) , url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-003-0190-6 , journal=Ichthyological Research , language=en , volume=51 , issue=1 , pages=33–37 , doi=10.1007/s10228-003-0190-6 , bibcode=2004IchtR..51...33S , s2cid=21508894 , issn=1616-3915, url-access=subscription

Behavior

Predation

{{Expand section, date=May 2025, Merging may be preferrable, but let's see if anyone can save it Lophius piscatorius MHNT

The name "anglerfish" derives from the species' characteristic method of predation. Anglerfish typically have at least one long filament sprouting from the middle of their heads, termed the illicium. The illicium is the detached and modified first three spines of the anterior dorsal fin. In most anglerfish species, the longest filament is the first. This first spine protrudes above the fish's eyes and terminates in an irregular growth of flesh (the esca), and can move in all directions. Anglerfish can wiggle the esca to make it resemble a prey animal, which lures the anglerfish's prey close enough for the anglerfish to devour them whole.{{cite book, last=Smith, first=William John, title=The Behavior of Communicating: an ethological approach, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zu2ML2rigZ4C&pg=PA381, year=2009, publisher=Harvard University Press, isbn=978-0-674-04379-4, page=381, quote=Others rely on the technique adopted by a wolf in sheep's clothing—they mimic a harmless species. ... Other predators even mimic their prey's prey: anglerfish (Lophiiformes) and alligator snapping turtles '' Macroclemys temminckii'' can wriggle fleshy outgrowths of their fins or tongues and attract small predatory fish close to their mouths. Some deep-sea anglerfish of the bathypelagic zone also emit light from their esca to attract prey. Because anglerfish are opportunistic foragers, they show a range of preferred prey with fish at the extremes of the size spectrum, whilst showing increased selectivity for certain prey. One study examining the stomach contents of threadfin anglerfish ('' Lophiodes spilurus'') off the Pacific coast of Central America found these fish primarily ate two categories of

benthic The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...

prey:

crustaceans Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of Arthropod, arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquat ...

and

teleost Teleostei (; Ancient Greek, Greek ''teleios'' "complete" + ''osteon'' "bone"), members of which are known as teleosts (), is, by far, the largest group of ray-finned fishes (class Actinopterygii), with 96% of all neontology, extant species of f ...

fish. The most frequent prey were pandalid shrimp. 52% of the stomachs examined were empty, supporting the observations that anglerfish are low energy consumers.

Movement and energy conservation

All anglerfish are weak swimmers, including the pelagic deep-sea anglerfish. Demersal species often "

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over ...

" on the bottom upon their pectoral and pelvic fins. The pelvic fins were lost in the deep-sea anglers. The deep-sea anglers often drift without actively swimming; ''

In situ is a Latin phrase meaning 'in place' or 'on site', derived from ' ('in') and ' ( ablative of ''situs'', ). The term typically refers to the examination or occurrence of a process within its original context, without relocation. The term is use ...

'' observation of female '' Oneirodes'' and whipnose anglerfish (from ROVs) recorded that they often passively float in place or in a current, but they were sometimes observed to attempt to flee from the ROV, beating its pectoral fins in-phase while undulating its tail fin. The lethargic behavior of these ambush predators are suited to the energy-poor environment of the deep sea.{{cite journal, last=Luck, first=Daniel Garcia, author2=Pietsch, Theodore W., title=Observations of a Deep-sea Ceratioid Anglerfish of the Genus Oneirodes (Lophiiformes: Oneirodidae), journal=Copeia, date=4 June 2008, volume=2008, issue=2, pages=446–451, doi=10.1643/CE-07-075, s2cid=55297852 The jaw and stomach of the anglerfish can extend to allow it to consume prey up to twice its size. Because of the limited amount of food available in the anglerfish's environment, this adaptation allows the anglerfish to store food when there is an abundance.{{Citation needed, date=April 2025, reason=Previous citation 404'd The sea toad '' Chaunax endeavouri'' has been observed to retain water in its gills for at least around 26 seconds and up to 4 minutes in some cases. This behavior is thought to be an energy-saving measure as respiration requires energy, thus the fish "holding its breath" may conserve enough energy for such a behavior to be beneficial.{{cite web , url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/coffinfish-can-hold-their-breath-four-minutes-180972529/ , title=Coffinfish Can Hold Their Breath for Up to Four Minutes on the Ocean Floor , author=Meilan Solly , date=1 July 2019 , access-date=22 March 2025 , publisher=Smithsonian Magazine

Reproduction

{{Expand section, date=May 2025, information on frogfish and batfish spawning The deep-sea anglerfish employ an unusual mating method: because individuals are locally rare, encounters between two of the same species are also very rare, and finding a mate can be problematic; this has led to the development of sexual parasitism in anglerfish, where the males latch onto their mates using their mouths, which may not be suitable or effective for prey capture.{{cite journal, last=Pietsch, first=Theodore W., title=A Review of the Monotypic Deep-Sea Anglerfish Family Centrophrynidae: Taxonomy, Distribution and Osteology, journal=Copeia, date=8 March 1972, volume=1972, issue= 1, pages=17–47, jstor=1442779, doi=10.2307/1442779{{Cite journal , last=Isakov , first=Noah , date=2022 , title=Histocompatibility and Reproduction: Lessons from the Anglerfish , journal=Life , language=en , volume=12 , issue=1 , pages=113 , doi=10.3390/life12010113 , issn=2075-1729 , pmc=8780861 , pmid=35054506 , bibcode=2022Life...12..113I , doi-access=free When scientists first started capturing ceratioid anglerfish, they noticed that all of the specimens were female, and on some of these they had what appeared to be

parasites Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The en ...

attached to them, which turned out to be highly dimorphic male ceratioids. This is one of the few instances of naturally occurring parabiosis. In some species of anglerfish, fusion between male and female when reproducing is possible due to the lack of immune system keys that allow antibodies to mature and create receptors for T-cells. {{Further, Ceratioidei#Sexual parasitism The spawn of all anglerfish are enveloped by a

gelatinous Gelatin or gelatine () is a translucent, colorless, flavorless food ingredient, commonly derived from collagen taken from animal body parts. It is brittle when dry and rubbery when moist. It may also be referred to as hydrolysis, hydrolyzed col ...

sheath, which has multiple terms referring to it. The spawn of the ''

'' anglerfish consists of a thin sheet of transparent gelatinous material {{convert, 25, cm, 0, abbr=on wide and may be longer than {{convert, 10, m, abbr=on; this "egg mass" may contain over a million eggs. The eggs in this sheet are in a single layer, each in its own cavity. The larvae are pelagic and have the pelvic fins elongated into filaments. It is thought that these egg masses effectively disperse their young over great distances and a large area. A {{convert, 77, mm, in} female '' Linophryne arborifera'', with a {{convert, 15, mm, in} parasitic male, was observed to have numerous eggs embedded in a gelatinous mass (the "egg raft" or "veil") protruding from the genital opening; the eggs, 0.6–0.8mm in diameter, are among the largest known for any ceratioid.{{cite journal , last1=Bertelsen , first1=E , title=Notes on Linophrynidae 5: a revision of the deepsea anglerfishes of the Linophryne arborifera-group (Pisces, Ceratoidei) , journal=Steenstrupia , date=1980 , volume=6 , issue=6 , pages=29–70 , issn=0375-2909, url=https://eurekamag.com/research/021/437/021437497.php , access-date=2 March 2025

Relation to humans

Classical interpretation

In the History of Animals,

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

described the "Fishing-Frog" (one of the local ''Lophius'' species, like '' L. piscatorius'' or '' L. budegassa'') as an example of a marine species well adapted to their environment, those equipped with "ingenious devices" that it uses to capture prey, alongside the

Torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

. He noted that fishing-frogs that have lost their lure appeared to be thinner than those still intact.

As food

{{Multiple image , direction = vertical , align = left , image1 = Ankimo4.jpg , image2 = Havtaske med fennikel, bladselleri, citron og dild (5484660575).jpg , footer = Lophiid dishes from Japan ('' ankimo'') and Denmark Lophiidae, marketed as monkfish or goosefish, are of commercial interest with fisheries found in western Europe, eastern North America, Africa, and East Asia. In Europe and North America, the tail meat of fish of the genus ''

'', known as monkfish or goosefish (North America), is widely used in cooking, and is often compared to

lobster Lobsters are Malacostraca, malacostracans Decapoda, decapod crustaceans of the family (biology), family Nephropidae or its Synonym (taxonomy), synonym Homaridae. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on th ...

tail in taste and texture. In Africa, the countries of Namibia and the Republic of South Africa record the highest catches.{{Cite journal , last1=Fariña , first1=A. C , last2=Azevedo , first2=M , last3=Landa , first3=J , last4=Duarte , first4=R , last5=Sampedro , first5=P , last6=Costas , first6=G , last7=Torres , first7=M. A , last8=Cañás , first8=L , date=October 2008 , title=Lophius in the world: a synthesis on the common features and life strategies , journal=ICES Journal of Marine Science , volume=65 , issue=7 , pages=1272–1280 , doi=10.1093/icesjms/fsn140 , doi-access=free In Asia, especially Japan, monkfish liver, known as '' ankimo'', is considered a delicacy. Anglerfish is especially heavily consumed in South Korea, where it is featured as the main ingredient in dishes such as '' Agujjim''. Northwest European ''Lophius'' species are heavily fished and are listed by the ICES as "outside safe biological limits".{{cite book , title=The End of the Line: How overfishing is changing the world and what we eat , last=Clover , first=Charles , year=2004 , publisher=Ebury Press , location=London , isbn=978-0-09-189780-2 In 2010,

Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of Environmental movement, environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its biod ...

International added the American angler ('' Lophius americanus''), the angler (''

''), and the black-bellied angler (''

Lophius budegassa ''Lophius budegassa'', the blackbellied angler or blackbellied monkfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lophiidae, the goosefishes, monkfishes and anglers. This species is found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and th ...

'') to its seafood red list—a list of fish commonly sold worldwide with a high likelihood of being sourced from unsustainable fisheries.{{Cite book , last=Pietsch , first=Theodore W. , url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1298208235 , title=Oceanic anglerfishes: extraordinary diversity in the deep sea , date=2009 , publisher=University of California Press , isbn=978-0-520-94255-4 , location=Berkeley , oclc=1298208235 Additionally, anglerfish are known to occasionally rise to the surface during

El Niño EL, El or el may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit * Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things'' * El, fami ...

, leaving large groups of dead anglerfish floating on the surface.{{Relevant-inline, date=May 2025

Captivity

20220619 frogfish Antennarius biocellatus joseph stansbury rosin 02

Various species of anglerfish are kept in captivity, such as frogfish and batfish,{{cite book , last1=Christie , first1=Barrett L. , last2=Montoya , first2=P. Zelda , last3=Torres , first3=Lyssa A. , last4=Foster IV , first4=John W. , chapter=THE NATURAL HISTORY AND HUSBANDRY OF THE WALKING BATFISHES (LOPHIIFORMES: OGCOCEPHALIDAE) , title=Drum and Croaker , date=2016 , volume=47 , pages=7–40 , url=https://www.academia.edu/23136399 , access-date=15 May 2025 though these are all species that inhabit shallow waters; deep-sea anglerfish have not been kept in captivity due to the challenges of keeping them alive through capture, transport, and a display that can repressurize them. '' Antennarius biocellatus'' is known by the common names brackish-water frogfish or freshwater frogfish; being

euryhaline Euryhaline organisms are able to adapt to a wide range of salinities. An example of a euryhaline fish is the short-finned molly, '' Poecilia sphenops'', which can live in fresh water, brackish water, or salt water. The green crab ('' Carcinus m ...

, it can live in freshwater for some time,{{cite iucn , author=Leander, N.J.S. , author2=Torres, A.G. , author3=Capuli, E. , year=2022 , title=''Antennarius biocellatus'' , page=e.T196304A2443685 , doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T196304A2443685.en , access-date=27 March 2024 sometimes claimed to be the sole representative of the anglerfish to live in freshwater. Like many frogfish, it has been displayed in public aquaria, though unlike the other species ''A. biocellatus'' are sometimes kept in home aquaria by private

aquarist An aquarist is a person who manages aquariums, either professionally or as a hobby. They typically care for aquatic animals, including fish and marine invertebrates. Some may care for aquatic mammals. Aquarists often work at public aquariums. They ...

s.{{cite web , title=Search Results for: antennarius biocellatus , url=https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=antennarius+biocellatus , website=youtube.com , publisher=YouTube , access-date=15 May 2025

References

{{Notelist {{Reflist, 26em

External links

{{Commons category, Lophioidei {{ external media , float = right , width = 260px , video1
Weird Killer of the Deep
– YouTube , video2
The anglerfish: The original approach to deep-sea fishing
– YouTube , video3
3D scans reveal deep-sea anglerfish's huge final meal
– YouTube
Tree of Life web project: Lophiiformes
* {{youTube, id=anDIlMVgNwk, title=Video (02:37) – Anglerfish mating * Lu, D. Anglerfish immune system lets them fuse with their mate. New Scientist 247, 19 (2020). {{Actinopterygii {{Authority control {{Taxonbar, from=Q206948 Bioluminescent fish Articles which contain graphical timelines Extant Early Cretaceous first appearances Taxa named by Samuel Garman