'Really amazing': scientists show that fish migrate through the deep oceans | Environment | The Guardian

'Really amazing': scientists show that fish migrate through the deep oceans | Environment | The Guardian





A tripod fish (Bathypterois grallator), one of the deep-sea species identified by the study conducted in the waters off the coast of Angola, West Africa. (Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Windows to the Deep 2019)

Deep-sea fish migrate too

Sea-floor observatories located 1,400 metres deep, off the coast of Angola, have found the strongest evidence yet that deep-sea fish follow seasonal migrations. Cameras captured 502 shots of fish over more than seven years, and found that traffic peaked in late November and in June. Among the fish were grenadiers (Coryphaenoides spp.), which can swim long distances, although it’s unknown how far. The authors speculate that the migration patterns might follow seasonal variations in food availability in shallower layers of the ocean.

The Guardian | 4 min readReference: Journal of Animal Ecology paper