"He must, so know the starfish and the student biologist who sits at the feet of living things, proliferate in all
directions. Having certain tendencies, he must move along their lines to the limit of their potentialities."

John Steinbeck - Log from the Sea of Cortez

Friday, May 7, 2010

Fish o' the Day - goosefish

A friend and former colleague (Hi, Don) asked today whether I had done an FOD on the anglers. There's apparently an article on them in the new Discover magazine, which I'll have to check out. Actually, the anglers include a pretty wide variety of fish belonging to almost 20 families. The sargassumfish, which we discussed a few weeks ago, is in the Family Antennariidae, while the really funky deep-sea guys belong to a variety of families in the Superfamily Ceratoidea. We'll get to them eventually. Tonight, let's talk about a little more user-friendly angler - one you might have dined on.

The goosefish, Lophius americanus is also sometimes known as the American angler. It's found in the Atlantic off the American coast, in depths ranging from just a few feet to over 1000. They can be large, up to 4 feet and 50 pounds. They're eye-catchers too, dorsoventrally flattened with a very broad head and a big mouth equipped with sharp, rearward-directed teeth. The first dorsal ray is modified into a lure, as is often the case in the anglers. The pectoral fins are modified into leg-like extensions that help them crawl along the bottom.

It's harvested for its flesh, which is sweet and white, not unlike lobster. Just don't tell people what they're eating.

The lure in action? Here you go...

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1 comment:

  1. SaltyDogMay 8, 2010 at 10:59 AM

    Hi john,

    Thanks for the info on one of the angler fish species and the link to a relative; the one page article in the June, 2010 issue, p. 20 (not on their web site yet; http://discovermagazine.com/2010), is about a different but related specie (maybe Cryptopsaras couesii?), and a bit horrifying to look at. As a geneticist, the evolution to get to this phenotype is, of couse, very interesting. I also have a bit of interest in reproduction schemes of anything living. As you know, this particular specie in Discover, and i'm guessing also in some of it's relatives, are quite unique in how fertilization occurs; can you update your blog on this fascinating part of the life cycle of the males and females of these species?

    good luck on a successful trip to the gulf!

    don

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