This Six-Inch Deep-Sea Predator Lights Up the Ocean’s Darkest Depths

Quick Take

• Despite looking like something out of a nightmare, this predator poses zero threat to humans. Why it's harmless →
• Dragonfish wield bioluminescence as more than just a flashlight, with their light serving a dual purpose that makes them surprisingly effective hunters. See its hunting adaptations →
• Rarely seen and virtually unreachable, most people assume dragonfish must be endangered, but the reality is far more complicated. Explore its conservation status →
• Living miles below the surface shaped this creature in ways that make it look completely alien, and every strange feature has a specific reason behind it. Discover its deep-sea features →

The deep sea is home to many different animals, some of which you may have never heard of before. One example is the dragonfish, which has an otherworldly appearance. This YouTube video by MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) provides an up-close look at one of these fish. Read on to learn more about these amazing deep-sea animals.

About the Dragonfish

The video above features a great look at the deep-sea dragonfish from the Stomiidae family. Like other deep-sea animals, dragonfish are alien-like in appearance. They have evolved this way for a few main reasons, including a lack of sunlight, intense pressure, and limited food. As seen in the video, dragonfish have long bodies that are extremely dark in color. They also have rows of sharp-looking teeth that they use to grab their prey. Seeing these fish up close is extremely difficult, given the depths of the ocean they inhabit. Dragonfish live in tropical waters thousands of feet below the surface, in the midnight zone. To hunt in these dark zones, they rely on faint bioluminescent glows. Dragonfish have special organs known as photophores that line their bodies and faces. These organs help them see and also lure in smaller prey.

While they may seem terrifying in the video above, dragonfish are completely harmless to humans. For one, they are practically impossible to reach because of the depths at which they live. Another reason is that they are extremely small, growing to only about six inches in length. Given how rarely they are seen, many people assume that they are an endangered species. However, that is most likely not the case. Since the deep sea is still largely unexplored and extremely difficult to access, the conservation status of many species is poorly documented. While deep-sea dragonfish are not currently considered endangered and are listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, their habitats are increasingly threatened by pollution, climate change, and deep-sea mining. Capturing such an amazing video of these incredibly rare fish is truly remarkable.