Lanternfish

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A small deep-sea fish that has light-producing organs along its body, which it uses to attract prey or to camouflage itself in dark water
2. A tiny marine fish living in the ocean depths, equipped with glowing photophores that help it hunt and hide from predators
3. Any of numerous small mesopelagic fishes whose bodies are dotted with bioluminescent spots, found in the dark waters of the open sea

Etymology: The lanternfish gets its name from the light it carries rather than from any lantern made by people. Its body is studded with light-producing organs called photophores, which give off a faint glow that helps the fish blend in with the dim light filtering down from the surface, a camouflage technique known as counter-illumination. The name is a plain compound: "lantern" joined to "fish," the lantern being the glowing organs and the fish being the animal that carries them. Because the family is so widespread and so many species are small and deep-living, the name has been applied to a large group of fish rather than to one species. Most of them live in the deep ocean, where they are among the most numerous vertebrates on Earth, and many make daily vertical migrations, rising toward the surface at night to feed and sinking again by day.

Synonyms: lampfish