How does the black swallower hunt?

How does the black swallower hunt?

The Black Swallower has a set lining each jaw that clamps together, giving it a good grip. Here’s how the fish is thought to do it: it starts with catching the prey by the tail. It then moves its jaw over the prey until the “food” is fully inside the stomach.

What ocean zone does the black swallower live in?

twilight zone
While its eating habits sometimes lead to a one-way ticket to the ocean surface, the black swallower spends the majority of its time in the twilight zone—or the even deeper bathypelagic zone. With its dark, scaleless body, the fish is a stealthy hunter.

How long is the black swallower?

25 cm
Description. The black swallower is a small fish, with a maximum known length of 25 cm (9.8 in). The body is elongated and compressed, without scales, and is a uniform brownish-black in color.

Why might the black swallower eat such big meals?

Imagine eating an entire fish bigger than you—bones and all! At only 25 cm long, the black swallower often eats fish much larger than itself with the help of an expanding stomach. Sometimes the meal is so large that there isn’t enough time for digestion before it starts to decompose.

Where are black swallower fish found?

Atlantic Ocean
Slender, scaleless and at just 25cm long, the black swallower is found in tropical and subtropical waters in the north and south-western Atlantic Ocean, and it has the perfect body for devouring other bony fishes whole.

How big is a black Dragonfish?

Females grow to 40 cm in length, but males reach a maximum length of only 5 cm.

Where is the black swallower found?

Slender, scaleless and at just 25cm long, the black swallower is found in tropical and subtropical waters in the north and south-western Atlantic Ocean, and it has the perfect body for devouring other bony fishes whole.

How is the black swallower adapted to scarce food?

The black swallower is a deep-sea fish that takes on much bigger prey, and then lugs around its digesting meal in a stomach that hangs below, a bit like a grocery bag. And in the little-populated deep, the fish can take time to digest these larger prey items without fear of being menaced, Sutton says.