Deep sea fish - amazing representatives of the world fauna

Deep sea fish are considered one of the most amazing creatures on the planet. Their uniqueness is due primarily to the harsh conditions of existence. That is why the depths of the world's oceans, especially deep-sea depressions and troughs, are not densely populated.

Deep-sea fish and their adaptations to the conditions of existence

As already mentioned, the depths of the oceans are not as densely populated as, say, the upper layers of water. And there are reasons for this. The fact is that the conditions of existence change with depth, and, therefore, organisms must have some adaptations.

1. Life in the dark. With depth, the amount of light decreases sharply. It is believed that the maximum distance that the sunlight travels in the water is 1000 meters. Below this level, no traces of light are detected. Therefore, deep-sea fish are adapted to life in utter darkness. Some species of fish generally do not have functioning eyes. The eyes of other representatives, on the contrary, are developed very strongly, which makes it possible to catch even the weakest light waves. Another interesting device is the luminescent organs, which can glow, using the energy of chemical reactions. This light not only facilitates movement, but also attracts potential prey.
2. High pressure. Another feature of deep-sea existence. That is why the internal pressure of such fish is much higher than that of their shallow relatives.
3. Low temperature. With depth, the temperature of the water decreases significantly, so the fish are adapted to life in such an environment.
4. Lack of food. Since the variety of species and the number of organisms with depth decreases, then food, respectively, remains very small. Therefore, deep-sea fish have supersensitive organs of hearing and touch. This gives them the opportunity to detect potential prey at a great distance, which in some cases is measured in kilometers. By the way, such an adaptation makes it possible to quickly hide from a larger predator.

You can see that fish living in the depths of the ocean are really unique organisms. In fact, the vast area of the world's ocean is still unexplored. That is why the exact number of species of deep-sea fish is unknown.

Variety of fish living in water depths

Although modern scientists know only a small part of the population of the depths, there is information about some very exotic inhabitants of the ocean.

Bazisauruses are the deepest fish predators that live at a depth of 600 to 3,500 m. They live in tropical and subtropical waters. This fish has almost transparent skin, large, well developed sensory organs, and its oral cavity is dotted with sharp teeth (even tissues of the palate and tongue). Representatives of this species are hermaphrodites.

Fish-viper - another unique representative of underwater depths. It lives at a depth of 2800 meters. It is these species that inhabit the depth of the Pacific Ocean. The main feature of the animal is the huge fangs, which somehow resemble the venomous teeth of snakes. This species is adapted to existence without constant food - the stomachs of the fish are so stretched that they can swallow a living creature entirely larger than themselves. And on the tail of the fish there is a specific luminous organ, with the help of which they lure the prey.

The sea line is a rather unpleasant looking creature with huge jaws, a small body and poorly developed musculature. Occurs on the seabed. Since this fish can not actively hunt, special adaptations have been developed. The sea features a special luminous organ that emits certain chemicals. Potential prey responds to light, swims, and then the predator swallows it completely.

In fact, the inhabitants of the sea depths are much larger, but not so much is known about their way of life. The fact is that most of them can exist only under certain conditions, in particular, under high pressure. Therefore, it is not possible to extract and study them - they simply perish when they rise to the upper layers of the water.