Krøyer's Deep Sea Anglerfish


Most of the creatures of the deep sea are still a mystery. Their structural and functional adaptations are different from any other animals in the world. One of the most intriguing creatures in the deep ocean is the anglerfish.
 
There are approximately 323 species of Lophiformes identified.

In 1845, Captain-Lieutenant Carl Peter Holboll (1795-1856) found an unidentified organism in the deep waters off Greenland. Holboll delivered the specimen to Henrik Nikolai Kroyer, a Danish ichthyologist and craniologist who later described the specimen as Ceratias holboelli.
 
All classifications are based solely on the female anglerfish. The female C. holboelli can range from 16.5 to 855 millimeters in length and are distinguished from other species by having a single escal appendage at the tip of the illicium. The male C. holboelli attaches to the female at an early stage in development. The parasitic male, which is completely dependent on the female for nutrients and protection, can range from 35 to 1140 millimeters in length.
 
The following video was created by zefrank to provide facts about the anglerfish in a comedic fashion. This video also provides great motion pictures of various species of anglerfish.





This website was created for the Multiple Organisms project by the Biology department of University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

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