Discovered in the deep: the anglerfish with vampire-like sex lives

A deep trawl has brought up a potentially new species of a fish whose extreme mating methods include permanent physical fusion

“I sometimes describe anglerfish as looking like a satanic potato,” says James Maclaine, senior curator of fish at London’s Natural History Museum, who believes a new species of the fish may have been discovered.

Many anglerfish are globular and lumpy in shape. They have a long prong sprouting from their forehead with a glowing tip that lures prey into their enormous, tooth-filled jaws. If their appearance is curious, then the method of reproduction that some species have developed – known as sexual parasitism – is even more so.