Ep 069: The Anglerfish Files

069: The Anglerfish Files

June 5th, 2026

The full episode

PRESSURISED

Or find us at any of these Podcasty Places

Spotify

Apple Podcasts

YouTube

Podbean

Welcome back to the Deep-Sea Podcast, your punk take on all things deep sea!

This month Alan has been creating an image guide for the 350 species they found in the Nova Canton trough, it's been tricky with loads of xenophyophores and glass sponges which can be difficult to morphotype, but he is hoping for a finished document akin to a trough based 'menu' of organisms.

Thom is organizing a workshop- which Alan is going to attend in person- which means fun times in Wellington are ahead!

Thom also took his first good look at the new snailfish, is fostering some kittens and spent many hours interviewing for upcoming shows and being interviewed for other podcasts.

He is most excited about our upcoming special deco-stop series on deep-sea pop-culture featuring board and video game developers.

Thom and the creative team behind Endeavor Deep-Sea, an award winning board game. Stay tuned for our upcoming deep-sea pop culture episodes!

Cretaceous Mythbusting and a Poetry Reading

We hear from Kat about the Giant Cretaceous Octopus claims, the possibility of it being real, interpretation of the size, wear patterns on the beaks, and how these patterns relate to the larger data sets available. We also hear Kat read a few poems from Vampire Squid- a new book of poetry from Prema Arasu, now available for purchase.

Giant, kraken-like octopuses may have ruled the Cretaceous deepSome octopuses that lived over 72 million years ago were as long as whales. These huge predators may have been the largest invertebrates ever.

Earliest octopuses were giant top predators in Cretaceous oceansTop predators drive changes in ecosystem structure. For the last ~370 million years, large-sized vertebrates have dominated the apex of the marine food chain, while invertebrates have served as smaller prey. Here we describe invertebrate top predators ...

From the Publisher's Website: You are what you see. The deep sea – home of the uncanny vampire squid – is fathomless and mysterious, but so too are the scientists who observe the creatures of the deep.

Full of wry wit and ironic scrutiny, Vampire Squid examines the relationship between humans and the deep sea as the poet places their colleagues under the microscope to draw attention not only to the teeming life beneath the sea, but the distinctive ways that oceanographer, geoscientist, taxonomist, marine biologist and geneticist interpret the same world through very different eyes.

Our Guests This Month:

This month we are honored to host a three expert superfan session for one of our favorite little devils of the deep- Anglerfish. Join Thom as he chats with James Maclaine Senior fish curator at the Natural History Museum London and our own Andrew Stewart, curator of fishes at Te Papa get together about some of their favorite fishes, the saratoide anglerfish or deep-sea anglerfish.

Listen-in to back-stage fish curator chat all about the wide variety of Anglerfish shapes and sizes, lures and lights, feeding preferences, reproduction habits, feminist archetypes, game show personalities, and a memorable experience of "pass the football fish". Including Vantablack, pharyngeal teeth, Dreamers, Wonderfish, sideways anuses, love bites, and an epic battle resulting in both combatants being “locked together in death”, this episode will scratch your Anglerfish itch in the most satisfying way.

Lasiognathus - Wikipedia

Andrew Stewart modeling his Anglerfish Hat worn to the episode recording, and holding Ted Pietch's book.

Black seadevil - Wikipedia

Caulophryne polynema - Wikipedia

Gigantactis - Wikipedia

“ I sometimes describe them as looking like Satanic potatoes”- James McClaine

Appearances and Collaborations:

Thom was a guest on Fish of the Week podcast

Last Moku Ocean Reef Chat and Under the Sea Virtual Exhibition 2026

Dr. Thom Linley- see his Instagram here

Meghan Jones- see her Instagram here

Under the Sea 2026 | UN Ocean Decade Virtual Exhibition | Moku Art Studio | Moku Art StudioExplore Under the Sea 2026, Moku Art Studio's UN Ocean Decade endorsed virtual exhibition featuring artists from 9+ countries creating art for ocean advocacy.

What's happening in our Deep-Sea Discord Community:

Amphipod microscopy- silk glands!
Subnautica 2 release and playthrough updates
Schmidt Ocean Footage Share- Barreleye- Winteria telescopa
Thom has been sharing some AMAZING photos from his Fish Curator job
Photos from hikes, trawling adventures, fieldstations and fossil hunting at limestone quarries
Blog posts from our member who is currently participating in an internship for the Alvin Submersible
A Bathyscape Trieste schematic video
The Bounty Trough expedition was the themed card for the Wellington Board Game Festival
New Shrimp Merch from our friends at Skype a Scientist
Terrible AI photos of imagined octopus eyes
Magnapinna Tattoos
Whalefall childrens book- Through the Darkening Sea

Support Skype a Scientist with the Squid Facts shop!The Squid Facts shop supports Skype a Scientist! We match scientists with classrooms, scout troops, and libraries. We also connect people with science using street art murals, and more! Learn more about us at SkypeAScientist.com

Leave us a voice message on the Answer phone!

www.speakpipe.com/deepseapodvoicemail

Some of our Featured News Articles:

Lost millennium of Galápagos deep-sea corals linked to major Pacific climate shift - Charles Darwin FoundationScientists have uncovered a hidden collapse of Galápagos deep-sea corals, revealing a 1,000-year disappearance linked to ancient climate shifts.

A millennium of cold-water coral habitat loss in the East Pacific during low ENSO variability in the mid- to late Holocene | PNASThe evolution of El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) under past and future climate change and its influence on marine ecosystems is highly debated....

Underwater robot discovered record-breaking creature the size of a car that could be thousands of years old, one mile down in the Pacific Ocean | Discover WildlifeAll you need about the biggest sponge in the world

Drapery and the secret history of paintingThough often taken for granted, drapery binds modern abstract painting by artists such as Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko to Giotto, Rubens and the greats of the past, says Andrew Graham-Dixon

Octopus influx keeping deep sea dolphins inshore for longerResearchers say Risso's dolphins are benefiting from the increase of octopus in the south west.

Future rare octopus blooms 'likely' in UK seasResearchers say the population surge is expected to recur due to unusually high breeding levels.

Hiding in Plain Sight: Evidence of Echeneidae Cloacal and Gill Diving Behavior in Manta Ray HostsHere we document seven observations of Echeneidae cloacal diving behavior in manta rays and one observation of gill attachment behavior. These observations span all three currently described species ...

First in situ observations of the goblin shark Mitsukurina owstoniWe report the first live in situ observations of the iconic goblin shark (Mitsukurina owstoni) on a seamount near Jarvis Island in 2019 and on the slope of the Tonga Trench in 2024. Past observations...

Scientists reveal identity of mysterious ‘golden orb’ collected during NOAA expeditionA two-and-a-half-year-old mystery of the "golden orb," an unidentified object that captured significant public interest when it was collected during a 2023 NOAA expedition, has finally been solved. Scientists have determined that the mysterious golden mass offsite link, discovered at a depth of 3,250 meters (over 2 miles) in the Gul

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Support us by becoming a patron and joining our deep-sea community.

We want to say a huge thank you to those patrons who have already pledged to support us, as an extension of our gratitude for subscribing each new Patron will receive an honorific from Thom:

Lain Null - is often found floating at the surface following undersea eruptions

Семен Приймаченко - is a pattern on the seabed made by an unknown animal

Prof.Bob-o-lo-po-lis - is a mysterious golden orb that baffled scientists

Jamie Morgan - makes elaborate burrows around hydrothermal vents

Brent S - made a mysterious sound picked up by a hydrophone only once

Ayla - is the biggest sponge

Thanks again for tuning in, we’ll deep-see you next time!

Click here to SUPPORT the Deep-Sea Podcast!