Angler Fish

I've always had an interest in marine life. In particular, I like the unusual, elegant, and often dangerous predators of the sea. Sharks are a particular fascination for me, as you will no doubt discover, but lately I've developed an interest in the beasts lurking in the darkest depths of the ocean.

Angler fish, the ones with the big teeth and the lights on their head. They don't look as if they could be real, and yet they are, living in the darkest depths of the oceans. Their mating system is particularly odd-the male exists as almost a parasite of the female. The male is tiny, the big teeth and light being found only on the females, and clings to the underside of the female as a tiny, feeble version of herself. It atrophies away, become even more tiny and feeble, until its body consists of little more than it's gonads. Once it impregnates her, it dies.

It's a sad life. And an odd concept to imagine. When these fish were first discovered, very little was known about them, and it was first thought that the male was in fact a different species, a parasite on the female.

Here's a great cartoon, illustrating the point:
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/angler