Tripodfish

Lore & Background

Bathypterois grallator is a simultaneous hermaphrodite, where each individual has both male and female reproductive organs. It mates by releasing both sperm and eggs into the water, which can be externally fertilized by another B. grallator. In the event one fish cannot find a mate, it can also self-fertilize, which increases the likelihood of reproduction in the sparsely populated abyssal plain. The tripod fish has been listed as least concern by the IUCN as of May 2013 with no specific major threats to the species. However, the tripod fish's habitat is known to be affected by human activity, such as deep-sea mining, drilling, and plastic waste.

Reader's Guide

The tripod fish is a subcarangiform swimmer, using a combination of its fins, tail, and body to move. Because its adaptations are almost entirely tailored to sitting still, B. grallator's movements are exaggerated and inefficient, and it is an overall poor swimmer. Its style of locomotion alternates between swimming and resting on the seafloor using its fins, using a unique bathypteroiform style of movement that is unique to the genus. When swimming, its pectoral, dorsal, and anal fins are held directly away from the body and are used for stabilization, while its elongated pelvic fins are held directly downward and perpendicular to its body.

When feeding, it is often seen standing on the seafloor using these extensions, in a distinctive "tripod" configuration that gives the species its name. B. grallator's diet consists mostly of zooplankton and small animals in the water column, and it undergoes an ontogenetic shift as it grows larger. Specimens below 200mm in length are mostly recorded eating small invertebrates such as copepods, amphipods, and crustacean larvae, while larger fish also eat mysids.

Above 240mm, the tripod fish's diet consists mostly of teleosts and decapods by weight, with approximately 78.7% of their diet consisting of teleosts.