As Jay Beiler was walking along Torrey Pines State Beach in San Diego, he stumbled upon a rare sight. At first he thought it was a jellyfish. But after sending photos to Scripps Institution of Oceanography, he learned it was in fact an Angler Fish.
“At first I thought it was a – like a jellyfish or something, and then I went and looked at it a little more carefully, and some other people were gathered around it too, and then I saw that it was this very unusual fish…It’s the stuff of nightmares – mouth almost looked bloody! I’d say it was nearly a foot long,” Beiler told the press.
About The Football Fish
The Football Fish is not one you’d likely see on the beach. Generally they live 3,000 to 4,000 feet deep in the tropical/subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. The species was discovered by Johan Reinhardt in 1837 and dubbed Himantolophidae.
This fish is very scary and uses its angler, the appendage on its head to lure in unsuspecting prey. It employs bioluminescence to give fish a false sense of security. The fish is black but with some types of preservation it’s skin can take on a washed out color. It has tiny eyes that are only there to see glowing prey they’ve lit up in the dark waters. Their giant mouth is has rows of jagged teeth and they can eat prey larger than themselves because their stomach can expand to enormous size.
If you’ve watched “Finding Nemo,” you know what I mean.
