A team of American scientists has discovered one of the darkest fish on Earth; the Pacific Blackdragon (Idiacanthus antrostomus). This fish can assuredly be called the 'blackest' animal. Because 99.5% of the light falling on its skin is absorbed.
The fish's surface and its likely applications in the above-water world are reported in a study published Thursday in the science journal Current Biology. Smithsonian Natural History Museum zoologist Karen Osborn, the lead author of the study, said in her research she kept coming across blackfish that she could not quite photograph. Karen could only capture their silhouette.
This urged her to take samples of the fish and study them. Deep-sea fish, she said, use their darkness to escape predators. In their surroundings, where sunlight can't reach much fish have developed bioluminescence (production and emission of light by a living organism) which they use to kill their prey.
Description and Physical Characteristics
Female black dragons are about 2 feet long and have fanglike teeth and a long chin whisker. The males are little, about 3 inches, and brownish. They have no chin barbel, no teeth, and no stomach. Unable to eat, the male lives only long enough to mate. Female black dragons use their trick to entice prey, clutching it with their sharp teeth.
Why It Is The Blackest Fish In The World?
Running many kilometers beneath the sea level, where sunlight could not touch at all, the team of experts found sixteen different creatures with greatly dark colors, but one of them turned out to be the blackest type of fish because it absorbs 99.5% of the light that falls on it.
Can We Eat The Pacific Blackdragon?
Pacific black dragons are not eaten by people, and there is no indication to recommend that people have any adverse effects on their populations.
What Do They Eat?
The Pacific Blackdragon eats fish, crustaceans, and shrimp.