Researchers off the coast of Tenerife were astounded when they came across a humpback anglerfish (Melanocetus johnsonii) at the surface in broad daylight.
This monstrous-looking fish, which is a species of black seadevil is usually found at depths of 200 and 2,000m, according to Condrik – Tenerife, the NGO that saw the deep-sea predator at the surface.
Condrik – Tenerife described the bizarre animal as “a legendary fish that few people will have had the privilege of observing alive,” when sharing their astonishing footage on Instagram.
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“This is a true predator of the deep, living on the seabed between 200 and 2,000m deep and using its dorsal appendage full of bioluminescent symbiotic bacteria as bait to attract its prey, just like in the popular film Finding Nemo,” says the charity.
The encounter took place just over a mile off the coast of Tenerife. The NGO was conducting a shark research campaign onboard the Glaucus vessel when marine biologist Laia Valor spotted something unusual in the water.
The biologists and educators onboard – Marc Martín, Antonio Sabuco and marine wildlife photographer David Jara – immediately sprung into action to record the spectacular footage.
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The researchers aren’t sure why this deep-sea predator had ventured into such shallow waters, saying in a statement that: "it could be due to some kind of pathology, an upwelling current, to escape of a predator, or other unknown factors.”
Whatever the reason, they say the unusual sighting “will be remembered forever by all its members.”
Credit: Footage courtesy of Condrik-Tenerife on board the Glaucus vessel with Laia Valor, Marc Martín, Antonio Sabuco and marine wildlife photographer David Jara.
All the work carried out by the Condrik Tenerife research group is authorised by the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITERD) and supported by the GesPlan elasmobranch study program of RedPROMAR.
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