Saturday, 27 July 2013

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This is the aptly-named "black swallower" (Chiasmodon niger), a fish known for eating bony fish up to 10x its mass and 2x its length.

It's found worldwide in tropical and subtropical waters at a depth of 700-2,745 meters.

Most specimens of this fish have been collected after one attempted to swallow prey too large for it to handle, and the prey could not be digested before decomposition set it. The release of gases forces the black swallower to the surface.

This particular specimen was found washed up on the shore in 2007. The black swallower measures 19cm long. The fish in its stomach is a snake mackerel measuring 86 cm.

Image credit: Phillippe Bush, Department of the Environment

More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_swallower
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5 comments:

  1. Prissydel Gado27 July 2013 at 08:43

    Wow!!! :)

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  2. Reese Jones27 July 2013 at 11:48

    he bit off more than he could chew

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  3. Dizeric Pelle27 July 2013 at 12:10

    Must have some killer enzymes to digest that..

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  4. Liny Easow27 July 2013 at 13:04

    Has someone implanted this in my memory? I can't believe it. Is this really true? Bizarre nature!

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  5. Serge Nechiporuk27 July 2013 at 15:56

    Reminds me of that photo of a Burmese python that failed to eat a crocodile in Florida

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