Flat-Faced Crawling Fish Discovered
By Matt J. Weiss, April 6, 2008 @ 02:00 AM (EST)
Source: nationalgeographic.com
Editors Note -
This is exciting news from DPG friends Andy and Buck from Maluku Divers and The Archipelago Fleet. We posted a picture of the anglerfish when it was first discovered and it seems to be a very rare new species.
Discovered in Indonesia in January, the species has forward-looking eyes like a human and crawls rather than swims.
These and other traits suggest the fist-size animal may represent a new family of fishes, University of Washington fish expert Ted Pietsch announced on April 2, when this photo was released. DNA tests are needed for confirmation.
Pietsch first learned of the unnamed species from dive-facility operators on Ambon island, Indonesia. "I knew it had to be an anglerfish because of the leglike pectoral fins on its sides," he said in a statement.
But the new species lacks the trademark forehead "lure" that other anglerfish use to attract prey.
These and other traits suggest the fist-size animal may represent a new family of fishes, University of Washington fish expert Ted Pietsch announced on April 2, when this photo was released. DNA tests are needed for confirmation.
Pietsch first learned of the unnamed species from dive-facility operators on Ambon island, Indonesia. "I knew it had to be an anglerfish because of the leglike pectoral fins on its sides," he said in a statement.
But the new species lacks the trademark forehead "lure" that other anglerfish use to attract prey.
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