Below is rare video of the so-called "black demon of the sea." The abyssal humpback anglerfish (Melanocetus johnsonii) appeared near Spain's Canary Islands off the coast of Tenerife. Usually, this delightful creature lives in the pitch darkness 1,500 meters down so it was quite a surprise when marine biologists from the conservation group Condrik Tenerife saw the animal. They were in the area on a shark research trip.
"This could be the first recorded sighting in the world of an adult black devil alive, in broad daylight and on the surface," Condrik Tenerife posted on Instagram. "This surprising discovery did not leave the crew indifferent and will be remembered forever."
From Oceanographic Magazine:
Just 2 kilometres off the coast of Tenerife, the underwater photographer David Jara Boguñá first spotted the otherworldly deep-sea fish.Researchers haven't determined why this fish showed up near the surface, but some scientists speculate that some individuals of the species sometimes rise up to the surface during the El Niño weather event which reduces the amount of cold water upwelling off the coast of North America.
Marine biologist Laia Valor who was also part of the shark expedition, told the EFE news agency: "We were returning to port when I saw something black in the water that didn't look like plastic or debris. It seemed unusual. We spent a couple of hours with it. It was in poor condition and only survived for a few hours."
Why the fish was so close to the surface remains a mystery and, sadly, it died shortly after the video was taken. Its corpse is now at the Museum of Nature and Archaeology (MUNA) in Santa Cruz de Tenerife for study.
Previously:
• Liz Sexton's epic paper mache Anglerfish head
• Want a weird handmade plush reversible anglerfish?
• Greedy anglerfish sculpture for a banker
