So the other night, my son asks me about this fish he saw in Finding Nemo. Normally I might not share such a tale, because it’s probably only memorable to our family – but the answers found from this innocent question were pretty impressive indeed.
You see, the alleged fish has a light on it’s head and huge fangs. I don’t know about you, but I’d never heard of such a beast. In fact, I thought it sounded like someone had been having a little fun in the animation room. I even made the mistake of mentioning that it might not be completely real!
You can imagine my surprise when I finally found a picture of the fish in question. That’s a freaky fish indeed, and it seems that very little imagination would be necessary to get this fellow looking like a scary fish!
So I looked around some more and found all sorts of information, including this little tidbit that seems to provide all the information you might need (sorry, link died). You see, apparently this vicious beast is the female of the species! And you thought human women were bad! Luckily they only live at depths of 1,600 to 10,000 feet!
The luminous organ on her head actually attracts her prey. She can vibrate the thing, too, presumably to attract prey if they’re blind. The worst part is that the male of the species lives only to bond himself to the body of the female and provide his seed so that the species may continue. He’s also a lot smaller and not quite as strange looking!
Comments
215 responses to “The Angler Fish”
Hey…Nice site. You guys r right…It is indeed an angler fish. Whoever dissgreea obviously never passed the third grade. I Havent read everything present, just like half way down. I think this is a good site with fine information. I am constantly watching the discovery channel and looking at these fish for my own pleasure. I have seen a show on the discovery channel referred above about the submerrsive going to depths to see these fish.
While watching Nemo with my son for the thirtieth time, I too was amazed by the angler fish. I remember on a trip to Cape Cod, we stopped by the Mystic Aquarium and the theme this summer was Finding Nemo, Surprisingly they didn’t have much information on the angler fish, though one tour guide did mention that the angler fish does exist in the deep sea, though not as large or as agile as the one in the movie. I found your site to be informative as well as pleasant. Thank you.
Interesting hypothesis, k – the lantern fish apparently have bodies posessing “patterns of light producing organs that light up as they swim”. Interesting.
This link has a diagram of one, and it doesn’t really look like the fish in Nemo, but that doesn’t mean that the designers didn’t get some of their ideas from it. This page also says that the lantern fish swim to the surface at night. We didn’t see that, but again it doesn’t mean that parts of the fish weren’t used.
Dori is apparently a Blue Tang. MIT used to have a great site with information on the different species in the movie. Unfortunately, no Angler. Plus they seem to have taken it down. Or perhaps moved it.
I thought it looked like a cross between an angler and a lantern fish at one point the entire back bone lights up like a runway I didn’t thing anglers could do this?
Anyone know what Dori is?
I am doing a report on angler fish
TY so much i have been needing information about this fish its so weriod and exiding. i have done so much on this fish and i need more information it is jsut so amazing to me
it is an angler fish, the reason i started looking is because my sons nemo book specifficialy stated the angler fish was after them.
OK, I was mistaken, it’s the 1979 Childcraft anual, titled “Story of the SEA”, so I was 9 when I learned of it(you can do that math). The angler is found on page 139, with an illustration of it on page 140. Unlike some have mentioned the angler is NOT a newly discovered spieces! Mention is even made in this book about the fish mentioned here that can swallow fish much larger then itself. Find someone who has these books and look for yourself. Being a packrat pays off, and although well used, my “World Book- Childcraft International” books are still in xcellent shape and help me teach my OWN 12, 10 and 2 year old, the things I loved to learn about at their ages.
I was trying to prove a point to my wife, when I stumbled over this site. AWESOME! If any of you are old enough to remember the Childcraft Encyclopaedias, there is one called, “Deep Sea Creatures”. This book is circa 1976, and has wonderful info on the anglerfish found in “Finding Nemo”; so I’ve known about the anglerfish since I was 6. Because of that book, when my wife asked what kind of fish it was, I knew right away.
Just had to get in my two cents… ok I’m good