Fish with a fishing rod
Evolution causes species to develop better and better hunting methods to get food. One way, used by some fish species, is to attract prey with their own body! If part of the fish’s body looks like a tasty worm or shrimp, other animals will try to eat it. The fish may make a surprise attack, and will devour the hungry prey that has been tricked by the bait. Just like when people fish and put a worm on the hook – but instead of a fishing rod, it’s part of the fish’s own body!
There are many different species of deep-sea anglerfish, but naturally, only a few people have seen them in real life.
Photo: Masaki-Miya-et-al.-CC-BY
A deep-sea anglerfish with its "fishing rod" attatched to its forehead.
Photo: NOAA-Photo-Library-CC-BY
Frogfish are related to deep-sea anglerfish, but lives in coral reefs in more shallow waters. They also carry their lure on their foreheads.
Photo: Betty-Wills-CC-BY-SA
Frogfishes' lures have many shapes and looks, adapted to different kinds of prey.
Photo: Rickard-Zerpe-CC-BY-SA
A frogfish with its lure out.
Deep-sea anglerfish with glowing fishing rod
The most famous group of fish that lure prey with their own body is the deep-sea anglerfishes. They have converted part of a fin into a pole-like rod on the head. At the end of the rod is a small glowing part that moves like a worm. The deep-sea anglerfish itself creates the light, and waves the rod. Other fish think it’s food and take the bait. That’s when the anglerfish quickly sucks in the prey and eats it. The deep-sea anglerfish is found in all the oceans of the world and lives at very great depths, always greater than 300 metres, where it is completely dark.
The wobbegong is a bottom-dwelling shark. It uses its tail fin to mimic a small fish - luring larger fish for the wobbegong to eat.
Photo: fiftygrit-CC-BY-NC
The alligator snapping turtle hunts by lying completely still with its mouth open. In the mouth it has a tongue that looks like a small worm when wiggled. It makes birds and other animals go for the tongue - and the turtle quickly snapps its mouth shut, and gets a meal.
Photo: gilbert_neil-CC-BY-NC
The spider-tailed horned vipers tail looks and moves just like a spider, to lure birds for the snake to eat.
Photo: Omid-Mozaffari-Public-Domain
The American aquatic garter snake lures in the water, and wiggles its tongue above the surface. It looks like a small bug, and hungry fish are lured directly into the snake's mouth.
Bild: Roy-Bridgeman-Public-Domain
The common death adder is a very venomous snake from Australia. It uses the tip of its tail - mimicking a worm - as a lure to catch prey.
Photo: Jean-and-Fred-CC-BY
Plants can also use lures to catch prey. Venus flytrap is a carnivorous plant, with leaves looking and smelling like flowers - to attract insects hungry for nectar.
Photo: Fae-CC-BY
Eels and snakes with worm-like tails
While some animals wear their lure on their forehead, others wear it on their tail. The pelican eel’s lure is at the end of its tail. The end resembles a whip, and is also luminescent, just like the lure on the forehead of the deep-sea anglerfish. The eel has a huge mouth, which allows it to swallow prey larger than itself. It lives in waters as deep as 3,000 metres, where there is total darkness.
Some snakes have the same way of attracting prey. The common death adder, a venomous snake that inhabits Australia, also has a lure on its tail. It bends its tail over its head and wags the tip to imitate a worm. When a hungry animal comes close, the snake immediately strikes.