the.com/anglerfish
the deep-sea fisherman whose lure is a glowing bacteria farm and whose romance is body horror.
means A deep-sea fish that dangles a luminous, bait-like growth from its head to lure prey within striking distance of its enormous, tooth-filled mouth.
from From "angler," one who fishes with a rod and lure — itself from the Old English "angel," meaning a fishhook (a cousin of the "angle" in fishing, related to words for bending or hooking), plus "fish." The name is pure description: a fish that fishes, complete with its own built-in rod and bait.
- living bait
- Lure glows from symbiotic bacteria it cultivates
- fusion males
- Tiny males bite females and dissolve into them
- shared bloodstream
- Fused male becomes a permanent sperm-producing organ
- pressure dwellers
- Live a mile deep in crushing darkness
- jaw flex
- Stomach stretches to swallow prey twice its size
melanocetus johnsonii — humpback anglerfish found in atlantic, pacific, and indian oceans at depths of 1,000-4,000 meters
cryptopsaras coelecanths — triplewart seadevil with extreme sexual parasitism where males fuse to females in the deep sea
himantolophus groenlandicus — atlantic footballfish that washed ashore in catalina island, california in 1990 and 2012