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Project Noah Nature School
Antennarius commerson
A. commerson (a.k.a. Commerson's Frogfish, Giant Angler) has a somewhat compressed, globular body, and sports different colors depending on their surroundings. It has a large, upward-directed mouth that is protrusible. True to its name, and like other frogfish species, it has a "fishing pole" with a lure, located on its head above its mouth. It has limb-like pectoral fins with an "elbow" joint. It feeds on small fish, and grows to about 35cm in length.
Reef-associated, preferring rocky bottoms, often found among sponges. Depth range: 5 to 70m. Widespread in the Indo-Pacific region.
Spotted this large specimen (about 30cm long) at a depth of 15m, off the northern coast of Talikud Island (dive site: Angel's Cove). It was nestled in between two barrel sponges, the color of which the frogfish almost perfectly matched.
Spotted on Sep 1, 2012
Submitted on Sep 1, 2012
17 Comments
Thanks, Blogie, for your generous offer of photos! I may take you up on that. :-)
You are very welcome! What you do is amazing.
Thank you, Fyn.K!
AWESOME!
Thanks, nexttogone! :)
Amazing creature! Love the series!
Hi lori.tas. Maybe you couldn't see them because they were perfectly camouflaged? ;) But, you know, it's infinitely better seeing them in their natural habitats.
Well spotted. I try to find these in aquariums, where they are labeled, and half the time I still can't find them.
My pleasure, JeannePickles. :)
This is awesome! Thank you so much for sharing! :)
Thanks very much, Bernadette! It's wonderful that you're teaching kids about the creatures of the sea. If you need photos for your poem, feel free to use mine. :)
Thanks, Blogie, for your great collection of frogfish!! I can't decide which one is my favorite. I was writing a list poem for children about the fish in the Red Sea and just love all the crazy names I came across.
Thanks, Maria! I'm still very far from having a good collection of frogfish, though...
What an amazing and fascinating fish - thanks so much for posting this. Love your spottings!
Thanks, Bernadette and East End!
@Bernadette - They come in different shapes and sizes and colors. Do a search for "frogfish" on my collection page and you'll see those species I've already spotted. :)
Wow! Amazing images.
Excellent! I had been wondering what a frogfish looked like.