Fish Black Dragon: description and photo

There are many predators on the planet, including fish. Black dragon, photo Which can be considered in this article, is striking with its ferocity. These fish, although small, but very rare. Meet them is not so simple, because they live in the water column at a depth of two kilometers. To study them became not very long ago, as equipment was not allowed before.

Where dwells

Black dragon is a deep-sea species, it is found in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans. This fish is from the Idiacant family. It is adapted to live on the ocean floor. These dragons live at a depth of 1000 to 2000 meters. This predator has several varieties, but they all look similar.

What does the Black Dragon look like?

The name of his fish was for coal black color and very sharp teeth. Her body is long and narrow. Scales of the Black Dragon as such are absent. Despite the small size, it is very ferocious predators. Their average length is 16 cm, the maximum is 50-60 cm. These dragons though small, but very aggressive.

Under the eyes of the dragon there is a small source of red light. It perfectly illuminates the fish path, and at the same time remains invisible to many in-depth inhabitants. Just the eyes of the latter are unable to catch this radiation.

These fish have a rather large head and mouth with sharp teeth. On the chin there is a long mustache, and on its tip there is a "fishing lure" - a photophor. The dragon, seeing the victim, begins to wave and blink. She, unaware of the predator, quietly swims and finds herself in the mouth. The whole body of the Black Dragon males is also covered with photophores, which attracts the female during the mating period.

Why the fish glow

Many deep-sea dwellers use bioluminescence, and the Black Dragon fish is no exception. Simply put, they have a special body called a photophor. It is thanks to him that light is produced. Thanks to the photophor, they not only lure prey and mate, but also uses it to communicate with other inhabitants of underwater depths.

Males of dragons

They differ significantly from females. Fish Black dragon, male, has very few teeth. In addition, the dimensions of the latter are half that of females. They do not even have a characteristic antennae on their head. But the photophor is beautifully developed, occupying a third of the head. Reaching puberty, males practically stop eating, their intestines begin to atrophy, and they just drift in the water. At this moment, they only deal with what they are trying to involve in the mating of females. After a successful "marriage union", males live only two weeks and die.

Fish Black Dragon: females

They are not only much larger than males, but they can even grow to half a meter. Females are just considered predators, because they have jaws planted with crooked teeth. Fangs are so large that the jaw of the fish does not close. Throughout the body of females, too, violet and golden photophores are scattered. Their way of life also differs. In the daytime they stick to the depth. And with the onset of darkness, unlike males, they rise closer to the surface in search of food. Thanks to the structure of the jaw and a very elastic and well-stretching stomach, they can swallow whole even the fish are much more themselves.

Black Dragon's larvae

They are very interesting and unusual. Fish Black dragon, being a fry, reaches 3 centimeters in length, with both sexes looking the same. You can distinguish them at the last stage of growing up. Because of the similarity of fry to adult individuals, they were considered for a long time a separate species of deep-sea fish. No wonder, since studying the inhabitants of the ocean is quite difficult. Before growing up, this fish undergoes a whole stage of metamorphosis and alterations.