Why is this animal unusual?
Most deep-sea animals make blue light and can only see blue. A few dragonfishes produce red light instead. To everything else down there it’s invisible – so the dragonfish can light up its prey without being noticed.
Why does it look like that?
The whisker on its chin, called a barbel, has a glowing tip that works as a lure. Its skin is among the blackest known, so its own light doesn’t give it away.
Strangest biological feature
See-through teeth. In at least one species the fangs are transparent, made of tiny crystals that don’t reflect light. Prey never sees the mouth coming.
Why is it strange?
In some species the female is 16 in (40 cm) long and armed to the teeth, while the male is a few centimetres long, has no teeth and can’t even eat. He exists only to mate.
Interesting behavioral facts
Their larvae are just as strange: transparent, with eyes on the ends of long stalks.
