Bare Island has some many different types of marine life that help make it so special. One of these are anglerfish. There are three different species of anglerfish that are regularly seen as well as a couple of other species that have been sighted on rare occasions. The anglerfish can be found basically anywhere around the island, but most I have seen have been on the Right Side of Bare Island.

The species we see are as follows:

The following are some photographs of these anglerfish, all taken at Bare Island. Some will show the same anglerfish as it grows.

BARE ISLAND ANGLERFISH

Porophryne erythrodactylus - Very hard to find due to camouflage and the fact they hide anywhere, even upsidedown. Only first found in the early 2000s at Bare Island. Generally only found in Botany Bay and nearby reefs, but rumoured to have been seen further south of here. They seem to hang around in the one location for a short time and then move. Some have been known to come back after a year or more absence.

There are many colours, including grey, orange, yellow and more. They also seem to be able to change colours, as we have seen one that was orange and then later was yellow. Individuals can be recognised by the pattern of growths on them, especially around the mouth and eyes.

This Bare Island anglerfish was seen by me on 23 September 2020	Here is the same anglerfish, now orange, seen on 9 November 2021 Seen in same general location as before

STRIPED/STRIATED ANGLERFISH

Antennarius striatus - much more common and easier to find, come in many colours including brown, black and yellow. These are quite variable in size, from small ones about 150 mm long to big fat ones 250 mm long.

This Bare Island anglerfish was seen by me on 23 September 2020	Here is the same anglerfish, now orange, seen on 9 November 2021 Seen in same general location as before

PAINTED ANGLERFISH

Antennarius pictus - most of the ones we see are tiny babies, starting from 3 mm in length. The colours are mostly orange for baby ones but adults can be other colours including black. We see far more tiny ones than adults. These tend to be on the sides of rocks or walls rather than flat on the top.

This tiny painted anglerfish was seen on 9 November 2021	The same anglerfish, a few days later on 19 November 2021 Seen in exact same spot
Another photo of the painted anglerfish, 29 December 2021, markings more prominent now Has moved a few metres to another rock	The same anglerfish, on 13 January 2022, 300 mm long and more prominent markings Now on top of the rock rather than the side
This tiny painted anglerfish was found by me on 9 November 2021	The same anglerfish, a bit bigger, seen on 10 December 2021 Seen in exact same spot
This tiny painted anglerfish was seen on 20 April 2020	Another anglerfish seen on 9 May 2020
This tiny painted anglerfish was first seen on 26 August 2020	The same anglerfish, a bit bigger, seen on 7 October 2020 Seen in exact same spot
The same tiny painted anglerfish as above two photos, 5 January 2021	The same anglerfish, a fair bit bigger than the first photo, 12 January 2021 Still in exact same spot

SUMMARY

For more information about the dives, go to the Bare Island Dives index.