The depths of the sea hold many mysteries and bizarre animals. One of them is an exotic fish, a type of monkfish that swims upside down. This species uses the appendage to attract and “catch” other fish and squid, which are its main prey.

The exotic fish swims upside down using what appears to be a “fishing rod”. Photo: Japan Agency for Marine Geoscience and Technology/R7/ND.

The study, led by biologists led by Andrew L. Stewart of the New Zealand Museum and published in the Journal of Fish Biology, details the behavior of these animals, which are considered unique.

A bladenose angler’s rod can reach “four times the total length” of its body, a study has found. In addition, the tip of the appendage also contains luminescent bacteria that attract prey in the dark.

However, only females have these characteristics, as males are tiny with a normal body. The study found that the species is difficult to study and that for decades they were thought to be normal swimmers due to their anatomy. However, observation missions have shown that the lives of these animals are much stranger.

“They’re beyond anyone’s wildest imagination,” fish expert Elizabeth Miller (who was not involved in the study) told the New York Times.

Exotic fish swimming upside down

Suspicions about the swimming method of this species arose in 1999. The New York Times reported that the first clue to the binos anglerfish’s strangeness emerged earlier this year when a submarine filmed one swimming upside down near the Hawaiian Islands.

Despite the recording, scientists waited for more incidents to determine whether the incident was simply abnormal and stupid behavior.

Anglerfish Gigantactis suspended upside down
To deep sea creatures