|Scientific Name: Antennarius pictus|
|Geographical Range: The Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa to the Hawaiian and Society islands.|
|Habitat: Marine, found in shallow sheltered reefs, usually at a depth of 0-75m.|
|Diet in the Wild: Fishes and nektonic organisms that are attracted by angling apparatus (see special adaptations).|
|Conservation Status: Not protected, not on IUCN red list..|
|Location in the Zoo: No longer in Aquarium|
Angler Frogfishes can be up to 30cm in length. Its angling apparatus (see below) is long and contains many dark bands. The colour of the fish can vary but they all have black spots at the rear of the fish and its pectoral fins are white tipped.
The Angler Frogfish is mainly solitary and does not guard its offspring.
Antennarius Pictus, as with other anglerfishes, have a few specialized adaptations that make them efficient ambush predators. Most obvious of these adaptations is the angling apparatus. This is modified fleshy fin in the shape of a small fish that dangles in front of the snout. The fish will remain motionless during feeding, until prey is attracted by its angler apparatus. The colour and shape of this anglerfish allows its body to blend in with the environment. They also have an adapted skull that allows large prey to be swallowed and larger suction forces when the mouth is opened. It takes only seven milliseconds for Antennarius Pictus to open its mouth, suck in and engulf its prey.
|Reproductive Behavior: Painted frogfish produce eggs that are scattered in open water. The eggs are joined together by an 'egg raft'- a jelly-like mucus in the shape of ribbons. Little else is known about their reproductive behavior.||The Animal at the Zoo:
History of the animals at the zoo, your personal observations of the animal.
George Chi Ho Tang : email@example.com
Sources and Links:
Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, 2nd edition. Volume 5,Fishes II, pages 47-51.
Edited by Michael Hutchins, Dennis A. Thoney, Paul V. Loiselle, and Neil Schlager. Farmington Hills, MI:Gale Group, 2003.
http://www.starfish.ch/, version 10/21/2003 02:14:21 Copyright Teresa Zubi
http://www.edge-of-reef.com/, Massimo Boyer & Paola Bearzi, photos of the respective authors.
WhoZoo Animal Index
Fish at the Fort Worth Zoo