In the final Critter of the Week for Marine Month, I introduce the villainous Anglerfish with the help of SeaLife Europe’s Joe Lavery…

• There are more than 200 species of anglerfish identified and they can range in size from a tiny thumbnail to a small dog.
• The name Anglerfish comes from the ‘fishing rod’ on their head which is in fact a modified dorsal spine called an illicium that’s used for hunting.
• They can go for days on end without eating but when the time does come they’re able to eat a fish which is twice their own size.
• The deep-sea Anglerfish lives more than a mile underwater on the desolate ocean floor, meaning that when a male and female cross paths they don’t hang around.
• The male angler bites into the female and fuses its mouth to her body, eventually becoming a part of her used only to fertilise her eggs.

You can listen to the full interview for the Naked Scientists here.