PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — For the first time known to anyone, a fish that lives in complete darkness on the ocean floor has washed up on shore near Cannon Beach, the Seaside Aquarium said.
The Beachcombers found the the deep-sea anglerfish, also called the Pacific football fish, just south of Cannon Beach, the aquarium said.
“Only 31 specimens have been recorded worldwide,” the aquarium said, and only “a handful of football fish have been recorded in New Zealand, Japan, Russia, Hawaii, Ecuador, Chile and California”. But to our knowledge, this is the first time a Pacific footballfish has been reported along the Oregon Coast.
These fish live between 2,000 and 3,300 feet deep in the ocean and “they use the light shining from a phosphorescent bulb on their forehead to attract prey.” Males are 10 times smaller than females, lose their eyes and internal organs and get all their nutrients from females.
“Males are more like parasites,” the Seaside Aquarium said, and while it’s unclear how they find females in complete darkness, without eyes, they provide the females with “a constant source of sperm.”
KOIN 6 News will have more information as it develops.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports and streaming videos, visit KOIN.com.
yahoo
