anglerfish, any of about 210 species of marine fishes of the order Lophiiformes. Anglers are named for their method of “fishing” for their prey. The foremost spine of the dorsal fin is located on the head and is modified into a “fishing rod” tipped with a fleshy “bait.” Prey fishes attracted to this lure stray close enough for the anglerfish to swallow them. Often bizarre in form, anglerfishes are also characterized by small gill openings and by limblike pectoral and (in some species) pelvic fins. Most species of anglerfishes inhabit the sea bottom. They are divided into four groups: batfish, goosefish, frogfish, and deep-sea angler.
The deep-sea anglers comprise 11 families of the superfamily Ceratioidea. Unlike other anglers, they lack pelvic fins, and they swim about, though feebly, rather than live on the bottom. They may be up to 1.2 metres (4 feet) long, but most are much smaller. Only the females have a “fishing rod.” This ranges from short to long, and the “bait”—almost always luminous—from simple to ornate. In some species there are also other luminous organs.
Deep-sea anglers prey on various fishes and invertebrates. Some have been known to swallow prey larger than themselves. In all deep-sea anglers, the males are much smaller than the females and lack an angling apparatus. Three families are notable for the fact that the males live as permanent parasites on their mates. In these species, the male attaches himself, by biting, to the body of the female. His mouth fuses with her skin, and the bloodstreams of the two fishes become connected, the male thereafter remaining totally dependent on the female for nourishment.