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Monkfish (or Headfish) is the English name of a number of types of fish in the northwest Atlantic, most notably the species of the anglerfish
Anglerfish

Anglerfish are the members of the order Lophiiformes. They are Osteichthyes named for their characteristic mode of predation, wherein a fleshy growth from the fish's head acts as a Aggressive_mimicry#Food_as_an_attractant; this is considered analogous to angling....
 genus Lophius
Lophius

Members of the genus Lophius, also sometimes called monkfish, goosefish, fishing-frogs, frog-fish, and sea-devils, are well known off the coasts of Europe generally, the grotesque shape of its body and its singular habits having attracted the attention of naturalists of all ages....
  and the angelshark genus Squatina.






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Monkfish
Monkfish At Black Head
Monkfish (or Headfish) is the English name of a number of types of fish in the northwest Atlantic, most notably the species of the anglerfish
Anglerfish

Anglerfish are the members of the order Lophiiformes. They are Osteichthyes named for their characteristic mode of predation, wherein a fleshy growth from the fish's head acts as a Aggressive_mimicry#Food_as_an_attractant; this is considered analogous to angling....
 genus Lophius
Lophius

Members of the genus Lophius, also sometimes called monkfish, goosefish, fishing-frogs, frog-fish, and sea-devils, are well known off the coasts of Europe generally, the grotesque shape of its body and its singular habits having attracted the attention of naturalists of all ages....
  and the angelshark genus Squatina. The term is also occasionally used for a European sea monster
Sea monster

Sea monsters are sea-dwelling legendary creatures, often believed to be of immense size.Marine monsters can take many forms, including sea dragons, sea serpents, or multi-armed beasts; they can be slimy or scaly, often spouting jets of water....
 more often called a sea monk
Sea monk

The sea monk, or sometimes monk-fish, was the name given to a sea animal found off the coast of Denmark almost certainly in 1546. At this time it was regarded to be a sea monster and described as a "fish" that looked superficially like a monk....
.

Monkfish is the most common English name for the genus Lophius in the northwest Atlantic but goosefish
Goosefish

Goosefishes are a family, Lophiidae, of anglerfishes. They are found in the Arctic, Atlantic, Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans where they live on sandy and muddy bottoms of the continental shelf and continental slope, at depths in excess of ....
  is used as the equivalent term on the eastern coast of North America. Lophius has three long filaments sprouting from the middle of the head; these are the detached and modified three first spines of the anterior dorsal fin. As in most anglerfish species, the longest filament is the first, which terminates in an irregular growth of flesh, the esca. This modified fin ray is movable in all directions. This esca is used as a lure to attract other fishes, which monkfish then typically swallow whole. Experiments have shown, however, that whether the prey has been attracted to the lure or not is not strictly relevant, as the action of the jaws is an automatic reflex triggered by contact with the esca.

It grows to a length of more than 5 ft; specimens of 3 ft are common.

Two species Lophius piscatorius and Lophius budegassa are found in north-western Europe and referred to as monkfish, with L. piscatorius by far the most common species around the British Isles and of major fishery interest. In Europe and North America, the texture of the tail meat of fish of the genus Lophius, is sometimes compared to lobster tail and has been alluded to as the "poor man's lobster." According to Seafood Watch
Seafood Watch

Seafood Watch one of the best known Sustainable seafood advisory lists and certification, and has influenced similar programs around the world. It is a program designed to raise consumer awareness about the importance of buying seafood from sustainability sources....
, monkfish is currently on the list of fish that American consumers who are sustainability minded should avoid.

A second group of fish also known as monkfish
Monkfish

Monkfish is the English name of a number of types of fish in the northwest Atlantic, most notably the species of the anglerfish genus Lophius and the angelshark genus Squatina....
 are members of the genus Squatina, in the angel shark family Squatinidae. These are of somewhat similar shape to the anglerfish, but completely unrelated; as they are elasmobranchs
Elasmobranchii

Elasmobranchii is the subclass of cartilaginous fish that includes skates, batoidea, and shark....
. These fish are only of minor significance for human consumption, though they are endangered because they are caught as bycatch by trawlers.

See also

  • Lophiiformes
  • Anglerfish
    Anglerfish

    Anglerfish are the members of the order Lophiiformes. They are Osteichthyes named for their characteristic mode of predation, wherein a fleshy growth from the fish's head acts as a Aggressive_mimicry#Food_as_an_attractant; this is considered analogous to angling....


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