A Fish with a See Through Head
March 18, 2009
This small, dark barreleye fish has a see-through forehead. The two spots on the front of its face are nostril-like organs, not eyes. For eyes, look inside the clear covering to the pair of green domes. Those are the lenses, and this fish is looking straight up through the top of its head.
The fish in the picture is alive and you’re looking inside its head. Really. It’s not a medical freak. Just a kind of fish with a naturally see-through forehead.
A new species, you might think. But no. The story is odder than that.
Meet one of the fish called barreleyes. This kind lives some 600 meters deep or more (that’s more than a third of a mile) in the Pacific Ocean.
A see-through forehead sounds like something you might remember to mention when describing a new fish. But 70 years ago scientists didn’t say a word about it when they gave the fish its official scientific name (Macropinna microstoma).
Those earlier fish scientists probably didn’t know about the clear forehead. They had to work from fish caught in deep nets and dragged up to the surface. The long trip up didn’t leave the samples in such good shape.
Today a scientist can send cameras and other equipment down to study deep-sea creatures where they live. Since 1993, cameras from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California have met these bizarre barreleyes three times in deep water off the coast.
And researchers managed to catch one and bring it to the surface in much better shape than usual.
What a difference meeting a live fish makes. Old reports had talked about some slime on the front of the fish. Now researchers see that the slime was probably the remains of the clear forehead.
The covering is tough and like the clear canopy on a fighter jet that lets the pilot see what’s happening, says Monterey Bay scientist Bruce Robison. In the fish, the rounded window is full of clear liquid and covers the eyes.
Like fighter pilots, these barreleye fish look out through their clear covering. Check the picture for the pair of fat, green domes like the tops of balls, inside the head. Those are the lenses of the fish’s eyes. (In the picture, the green lenses point up, and the fish is looking overhead.)
March 18, 2009
This small, dark barreleye fish has a see-through forehead. The two spots on the front of its face are nostril-like organs, not eyes. For eyes, look inside the clear covering to the pair of green domes. Those are the lenses, and this fish is looking straight up through the top of its head.
The fish in the picture is alive and you’re looking inside its head. Really. It’s not a medical freak. Just a kind of fish with a naturally see-through forehead.
A new species, you might think. But no. The story is odder than that.
Meet one of the fish called barreleyes. This kind lives some 600 meters deep or more (that’s more than a third of a mile) in the Pacific Ocean.
A see-through forehead sounds like something you might remember to mention when describing a new fish. But 70 years ago scientists didn’t say a word about it when they gave the fish its official scientific name (Macropinna microstoma).
Those earlier fish scientists probably didn’t know about the clear forehead. They had to work from fish caught in deep nets and dragged up to the surface. The long trip up didn’t leave the samples in such good shape.
Today a scientist can send cameras and other equipment down to study deep-sea creatures where they live. Since 1993, cameras from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California have met these bizarre barreleyes three times in deep water off the coast.
And researchers managed to catch one and bring it to the surface in much better shape than usual.
What a difference meeting a live fish makes. Old reports had talked about some slime on the front of the fish. Now researchers see that the slime was probably the remains of the clear forehead.
The covering is tough and like the clear canopy on a fighter jet that lets the pilot see what’s happening, says Monterey Bay scientist Bruce Robison. In the fish, the rounded window is full of clear liquid and covers the eyes.
Like fighter pilots, these barreleye fish look out through their clear covering. Check the picture for the pair of fat, green domes like the tops of balls, inside the head. Those are the lenses of the fish’s eyes. (In the picture, the green lenses point up, and the fish is looking overhead.)
On barreleyes’ short tubes, the part that catches the image is at the bottom. That arrangement had puzzled scientists because tubular eyes should see only what’s straight in front of them and not much at the sides. That’s not very convenient. It would be a bit like looking at the world through the tube from a roll of toilet paper.
But looking at a living specimen, the researchers realized that an eye tube can move. Barreleyes point it upright to look overhead and then swing the lens downward so the tube points straight ahead, like the barrel of a mini cannon.
When the eyes point forward, the fish looks toward its pouty little mouth. Its lips stick out a bit, as if they would be good for picking morsels of food out of small places.
To see a video of the fish click the URL address below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RM9o4VnfHJU&feature=player_embedded
Now, post
1. One interesting fact you learned about this fish
2. How is it different than other fish?
3. What book, story, or movie does this article remind you of?
4. What did you already know that helped you understand his article?
An interesting fact that we leaned was that it has a see through head/four head. This is different from other fish because it has a see through head/four head and maybe the colors. This article reminds us of the movie Finding Nemo, and the travel channel. I already know that there are different kinds of weird and interesting kinds of fish.
ReplyDeleteBy Zack and Sarah
One intrusting fact is that the fish has a see through head. Other fish don’t have see through heads. This story reminds me of rainbow fish. I already know that this fish has a see through head.
ReplyDeleteBy Arnav and Dylan
One interesting fact Ginny and Malina learned about this fish is that it has a see through head. This fish is different than other fish because it has a see through head. The movie Sponge Bob, Finding Nemo, Shark Tales, Discovery Channel remind us of this fish. This article we read about a new sea dinosaur helped us understand it.
ReplyDeleteBy Malina and Ginny
One interesting fact is you could see threw its forehead. This fish is different from other fish because it has a see through head. It is so big! This article sounded like the movie Nemo. I already knew that most fish have nostrils on its forehead.
ReplyDeleteBy Joe