According to an article in Underwatertimes.com, a strange fish found off the Indonesian coast might represent a family of vertebrate unknown to science. The fish was sighted off the Indonesian Ambon Island and is a type of anglerfish. Finding a new vertebrate family in the ocean is really special, because during the last half century no more than five new families of fishes have been scientifically described. The unusual anglerfish was found and photographed on Jan 28 2008 by Buck and Fitrie Randolph and their dive guide Toby Fadirsyair. Since then, a few more specimens have been sighted in the same waters.

One of the reasons why the fish has managed to remain undetected until now might be its habit of crawling into crevices rather than parading itself in front of divers. The fish is tan to peach coloured and decorated with an intricate zebra pattern. The fish has rippling folds of skin which makes the fins hard to distinguish from the main body. Unlike most other anglerfishes known to man, this new found creature has no lure on its head and must therefore employ a different tactic in order to get its lunch. It will squeeze itself into narrow cracks in coral reefs and search for food inside. Before anyone can know for sure if this fish really represents an entirely new family of vertebrate, DNA testing must be carried out and a specimen must be more closely examined.

If you want to learn more about this intriguing fish, read the full article at Underwatertimes.com http://www.underwatertimes.com/news.php?article_id=64951030827

You can also visit Buck and Fitrie Randolph’s webpage where they have posted images of their discovery: http://www.divingmaluku.com/new-frogfish.html