A rarely seen “football fish” that lives in complete darkness has been found south of Cannon Beach, according to the aquarium

CANNON BEACH, Ore. (KTVZ) – A rarely seen fish that lives in complete darkness was found by beachcombers south of Cannon Beach, the Seaside Aquarium reported Saturday.

The deep-sea frogfish, also called the Pacific footballfish, lives at depths of 2,000 to 3,300 feet. According to the aquarium, only 31 specimens have been recorded worldwide, from New Zealand and Japan to Russia, Hawaii, Ecuador, Chile and California, but to their knowledge this is the first report from the Oregon coast.

“Little is known about her life story, but what is known is unusually fascinating,” the aquarium’s Facebook post said.

“Like other frogfish, they use light emitted from a phosphorescent bulb on their forehead to attract prey. At the depths where these guys swim, food can be very sparse, so soccer fish are not picky eaters. They eat anything that fits in their mouths.

“Only females hunt actively, as the males are actually more like parasites. Males are ten times smaller than females and find a female to fuse with. They lose their eyes and internal organs and get all their nutrients from their female partners. In return.” How the males find the females in the pitch darkness is still unknown.