This family of fish of fish contains some of the World’s most hideous specimens of aquatic life. There are definitely some creatures like the vampire squid and sharks that you don’t want to run into if you were swimming in the deep sea but these fish with their goblin faces and horrorshow teeth in my opinion are the last creature you would like to see.

There are over 200 species of anglerfish living in shallow to deep waters, along the bottom or in the open waters. What they have in common is the “lure”, a piece of flesh that they dangle (some glow) in front of their mouths to attract prey. Many species are made of teeth and mouth and almost nothing else. Their stomachs can expand to hold an extra large meal. The deep sea varieties are the most phantom and goblin-esque.

The monkfish from the North Atlantic is known for its tail meat which is supposed to be very tasty. There are a few fish known as monkfish (some outside of the anglerfish family altogether) but the “angler” is one of the most populous ones in Europe.

Monkfish