Hypnotising deep sea monster that dissolves male 'sex slaves' washes up on beach
A scary looking sea monster that turns males into parasitic sex slaves and hypnotises its prey has washed up on a beach.
The Pacific football fish has mysteriously come ashore in southern California leaving experts baffled as it normally dwells at depths of up to 3,300 feet in the sea. The velvet black creature with razor-sharp teeth like shards of glass was found at Moro Beach by a lifeguard. It is a species of anglerfish with the female having a long stalk with bioluminescent tip that is used to lure prey in the pitch-black water. The football fish that has been found is a female and measures 14 inches from mouth to tail fin. The females can grow to 24 inches, considerably bigger than the males that are about an inch in size.
The male’s job is to latch onto the female with their teeth and become “sexual parasites” where they are gradually absorbed into the female body and there is nothing left of them except for their reproductive organs. It is only the second football fish that is known to have washed ashore in recent years at Crystal Cove Park.
The fish normally is found in the depths of the ocean (Instagram/castateparks)
It has razor sharp teeth and can hynotise prey (Instagram/castateparks)On its Facebook page the park stated: “Guess who washed up just in time for Friday the 13th? It’s angler fish #2 at Crystal Cove State Park! In May of 2021 the same species of angler fish, Pacific Football Fish, was found onshore by a park visitor creating quite the buzz. Two years later the same species of fish has washed up again last Friday, October 13th. What does it all mean?
“The fish was picked up by California Department of Fish and Wildlife @californiadfw for further research. The angler fish that washed up two years ago is housed at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles @nhmla.”
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It told how the female fish is able to swallow prey the same size as its body. The post continued: "There are more than 200 species of angler fish worldwide and this particular fish is most likely the Pacific Football Fish. Only females possess a long stalk on the head with bioluminescent tips used as a lure to entice prey in pitch black water as deep as 3,000 feet!
"Their teeth, like pointed shards of glass, are transparent and their large mouth is capable of sucking up and swallowing prey the size of their own body. While females can reach lengths of 24 inches males only grow to be about an inch long and their sole purpose is to find a female and help her reproduce. Males latch onto the female with their teeth and become “sexual parasites,” eventually coalescing with the female until nothing is left of their form but their testes for reproduction. Wild!
"To see an actual angler fish intact is very rare and it is unknown how or why these fish ended up onshore. Seeing this strange and fascinating fish is a testament to the curious diversity of marine life lurking below the water’s surface in California’s Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and as scientists continue to learn more about these deep sea creatures it’s important to reflect on how much is still to be learned from our wonderful and mysterious ocean!"
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