The Pacific soccer fish (Himantoliphus sagamius) is an abyssal fish, that is, it lives more than 1,000 meters deep in the oceans.
Photo: Seaside Aquarium (Oregon, United States)
Although the Pacific football fish (Himantoliphus sagamius) has been known for more than a century, since it was first recognized by the Japanese ichthyologist Shigeho Tanaka in 1918, few people can claim to have seen it.
The main reason is that the Pacific football fish, As it is known in English, it is an abyssal fish, that is, it lives more than 1,000 meters deep in the oceans. This one, specifically, lives in the Pacific and its presence has been reported in New Zealand, Japan, Russia, Hawaii, Ecuador, Chile and California (United States).
For this reason, a group of local fishermen from the south of Cannon Beach, Oregon (United States), were greatly surprised when they found an individual of this species, just a few days ago. With this one, they say from the Seaside Aquarium (Oregon), only 31 specimens have been recorded worldwide. The recent one would be the first to appear in this state.
Although the aquarium acknowledged that little is known about these animals, they offered some information about this particular species. “Like other fishing fish, they use light shining from a phosphorescent bulb on their forehead to attract prey.”
But not only its appearance is peculiar. As noted by the aquarium, it is the females of the species that actively hunt, while the males are parasites. “As males are 10 times smaller than females, they find a female to fuse with. They lose their eyes and internal organs, obtaining all their nutrients from their female companions. In return, they provide the females with a constant source of sperm.”
For these reasons, the entity pointed out, it is still not known how males find females in complete darkness.
