Conservation Status: Unknown

Northern red snappers are active predators and eat just about anything that is smaller than them, including smaller fishes, crustaceans, octopuses, squids, etc. On hard bottoms and rocky and artificial reefs throughout their range, northern red snappers are one of the top predators, but adults are eaten by sharks, very large bony fishes, and marine mammals, … Read more

Though they spend most of their time in the deep, common fangtooths are known to migrate toward the surface, at night, following their preferred prey of crustaceans and other fishes. Common fangtooths are more active than many other deep-sea fishes and seek out food, rather than being purely ambush (sit and wait) predators. Their huge mouths and … Read more

Observers typically only see the head and a small portion of the body, however, sticking out from a hiding place in the reef. Besides the occasional sick or wounded fish that wanders past their burrows, spotted morays do much of their hunting on the move, at night and during the twilight hours. They are also occasionally active … Read more

This species is known to occur on coral and rocky reefs throughout the world’s tropical and subtropical seas, likely because it lives in the open pelagic ocean until it reaches a size of approximately eight inches (20 cm). However, an extensive genetic study of the spotted porcupinefish may reveal the existence of different species in different ocean … Read more

As they are ambush predators, their bodies are dark black, and even their stomachs are coated with black tissue to block out any light that might be produced by bioluminescent (light producing) animals that they eat. Along their dark bodies, Pacific blackdragons have several rows of specialized light cells, called photophores that are probably used to … Read more

While that may seem quite heavy, it is not very much for a fish that may reach lengths longer than a school bus. As a result of this general shape and the bright, silvery coloration and long, red fins, some people around the world know the oarfish as the ribbonfish. The first few elements of the dorsal … Read more

The tan bristlemouth is small-bodied, reaching lengths of only a few inches and weights of only a few grams. It has a relatively large mouth, compared to its body size and is likely predatory. Being numerically successful in the deep water column, this species one of the most abundant on Earth, and is probably an important prey species … Read more

Like all flatfishes, Pacific halibut have both of their eyes on the same side of their heads, and they live on the seafloor, lying on their blind side, with their eyes facing the open water column. This species is one of several “righteye flounders,” with both eyes on the right side of the head. Amazingly, when they … Read more

Flashlight fish are predominately nocturnal and are only rarely observed by SCUBA divers during the day. They spend most of the daylight hours hidden in caves or holes in the reef surface. They feed at night away from the reef surface and likely use their light organs to help them locate small, planktonic prey. Like many species that … Read more

Chilean jack mackerel are filter feeders that eat fish larvae and small, pelagic crustaceans. Though they filter very small prey, they use their relatively large eyes and strong eyesight to increase the density of prey in the water that they filter. This strategy is in stark contrast to that used by the very large bodied filter … Read more