Hairy angler
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Hairy angler | ||||||||||||||
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Caulophryne polynema Regan, 1930 |
The Hairy Angler (Caulophryne polynema) is an ocean fish, and was first discovered by a BBC film crew while creating the documentary series The Blue Planet.
The female is about the size of a beach ball and its body is covered in long antennae, which it uses to detect the movements of any prey nearby. The male is a tenth the size; about the size of a ping pong ball.
The Hairy Angler has an expanding stomach so that it is capable of eating other fish bigger than itself — evolved due to the scarcity of passing food.
It lives in the dark zone, over 1000 metres below the surface of the ocean, so although its skin is red, this will actually render it invisible, as red light does not exist at this depth.
Very little is known about the Hairy Angler. It is also worth noting that as it lives at such a great depth, its habitat has yet to be explored properly.