The Barreleye Fish (The Fish with The See-Through Head)

With a transparent, dome-shaped head, nostrils that look like eyes, and eyes that look… nothing like eyes, this fish is definitely an oddball…

Looking more like an alien at first glance or a Disney character from a blockbuster animation.

These strange fish creatures remind us that truth is often much stranger than fiction…

Note the differences between the Brownsnout Spookfish, the pacific barreleye (today’s focus), and the two other deep-sea fish species that have been recently discovered.

Interestingly, scientists differentiate their species because of differences in skin pigmentation.

These creatures’ weird appearance invites questions…

This fish sure ain’t your average tuna. However, far from being mother nature’s gimmick, it’s a beautiful illustration of evolution refining for purpose.

Its scientific name is Macropinna microstoma. Its class is Actinopterygii, from the order of Argentiniformes, and family Opisthoproctidae.

Got that?

Never mind. There’s no need to remember all of the Greek/Latin word-soup that defines its identity. 

Science calls it Macropinna, its friends call it the barreleye fish. The dumbfounded call it spook fish…

We’re going with ‘barreleye’ – it fits better than spook fish, and you’ll see why later…

With the help of some great investigative science from dedicated researchers, we’re going to share the story of Macropinna microstoma. The Barreleye.

What’s in a name hey? Let’s find out…

It has nostril-like structures on the front of its face, that look like the fish’s eyes, but are in fact olfactory organs akin to human nostrils. It’s small mouth looks more like a snout, and has no teeth.

In contrast to its head, its fins and body look reasonably normal and… fish-like. Yet it’s fins are pretty special—we’ll tell you why shortly…

The Barreleye Head

Their transparent heads serve as protection for their eyes while allowing them to see.

It’s often likened to the dome of glass that is seen on a fighter jet. It protects the pilots and allows them to see out.

evolution has given these creatures the ability to look straight up through their heads…

The tough transparent fluid-filled shield is what protects the green tubular eyes.

Importantly, evolution has given these creatures the ability to look straight up through their heads…

That is, it looks directly above itself without having to move.

Here is a cool short video showing them in action…

The Barreleye Mouth and Nose

You will notice two evenly spaced organs on its face that look a lot like eyes…

These are called nares and have nothing to do with vision.

They’re olfactory organs, that is, scent organs. They are very much like our nostrils. Loosely speaking, it’s a nose.

The mouth is small, perhaps disproportionately small…

It’s pursed to a point where it looks more like a snout.

It has no teeth at all, hence no dentists bills, no drills, and no fillings. Woohoo.

DID YOU KNOW?

Marine biologists speculate that its small mouth indicates small prey. These fish may well be quite selective when it comes to dinner.

The Barreleye Eyes

…the barreleye is one of the few vertebrates that uses a mirror for collecting light

The brilliant green eyes point in the same direction, therefore, giving the fish binocular vision…

That is, the two eyes create one picture. Interestingly, the barreleye is one of the few vertebrates that uses a mirror for collecting light.

The eyes sit in an upward portion looking directly above (through) their heads…

It’s this biological feature that makes these species unique.

DID YOU KNOW?

Contrary to what was previously believed by marine biologists, their eyes can actually rotate and look forwards, assisting them to catch their food… and not run into doors!

Seeing in the Dark

Scientists and biologists have always accepted that the fish’s tubular eyes are brilliant at collecting light.

However…

There is also speculation that the green fluid is ultra-photosensitive.

This gives the fish’s tubular eyes the capability of capturing the smallest amounts of light, including the bioluminescent glow of potential prey.

The fish’s eyes lack cone cells in the retina. Cone cells work best in bright light and are responsible for color vision…

With barely any light in the twilight zone, evolution has deemed them unnecessary.

NOTE

In short, barreleyes look up to find food overhead (such as drifting jelly), then look forward to catch their potential prey.

The high number of rod cells in their eyes allows them to distinguish between the filtered light of the sun and the bioluminescent glow of their potential dinner.

Their green, barrel shaped eyes are perfectly adapted for hunting in an ocean water zone with little to no light.

Let’s move on to the other features of the barreleye…

Barreleye Skin and Fins

Except for the fish’s head and fins, the body of the fish is a dark brown color. Their fins are silver, large and perfectly adapted to their behavior.

The barreleye uses their large flat fins to suspend motionless in the deep sea water…

The size of the flat fins, while perfect for stability and keeping them stationary, deliver exceptional maneuverability for hunting.

The position of their eyes works perfectly in concert with their flat fins, making them an excellent ambush predator.

The Diminutive Barreleye

The barreleye is not particularly big…

At an average size of 6 inches, it’s actually pretty small. When fully mature, they can reach a length of 17 inches.

How did they even manage to find this small creature in the deep vast seas?

A Little Barreleye History

Presumably, like the coelacanth, barreleyes have been swimming our oceans for countless millennia…

It’s a reasonable assumption because evolution commands it.

Considering our history on the ocean…

It seems surprising that these species were not discovered by science until 1939.

FUN FACT

When a marine biologist by the name of Chapman first observed the species, he couldn’t see that its head was transparent. In fact, science knew practically nothing.

The relatively late discovery of these creatures can be easily explained. The fish lives at 2,000 feet beneath the sea surface and has a limited global distribution.

Explorer’s Paradise

Scientists like to remind us, that even with our current technologies and research fervor, there is still much to discover in our oceans…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) suggests that as of the year 2000, ninety-five percent of the ocean still remains unexplored…

Recent Discoveries

Considering the salty depths they are usually found in you shouldn’t expect to find a barreleye tugging on your best saltwater baitcasting reel any time soon. We first discovered barreleyes as a result of bycatch in fishing nets. It wasn’t until 2004 that we discovered, and indeed photographed, this fish with a see through head.

Apparently, the netting process destroyed the transparency of their fragile dome-shaped heads.

Early Science Challenged by New Observation

Early researchers and scientists believed that the barreleye’s eyes remained fixed in place, looking up.

However…

Recent research by Bruce Robison and Kim Reisenbichler from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) has revealed a previously undescribed feature of the fish, their eyes not only move, but rotate inside in their transparent heads allowing them to look and direct their eyes forward.

MBARI researchers Bruce Robison and Kim Reisenbichler used video from MBARI’s remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to study barreleyes in the deep waters just offshore of Central California. The ROV cameras typically showed these fish hanging motionless in the water and their eyes glowing vivid green in the ROV’s bright lights.

biologists have observed that the barreleye has no lateral vision, that is, the ability to look sideways…

Interestingly, biologists have observed that the barreleye has no lateral vision, that is, the ability to look sideways.

It’s amazing what you can discover with remotely operated submersible vehicles!

Not so popular back in 1939 we guess, hence the mysteries.

Being able to observe creatures alive for several hours in their natural environments is, unsurprisingly, more revealing than staring at dead ones.

Speaking of mysteries…

Wanna know where barreleye lives?

The Deeper You Go, The Weirder it Gets

This section of the water column is often referred to as the twilight zone…

While the name refers to the diminishing penetration of sunlight, we think it’s pretty descriptive of some of the local wildlife.

It’s the lower depths of this zone where critters start looking really weird.

A Private Life in the Deep Ocean

Barreleyes, like the whale sharks, are found in the tropical-to-temperate waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.

The Pacific barreleye is known to populate North Pacific locations including the Bering Sea to Japan, and Baja California, Mexico.

They are also found in Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Greater Antillies and the Gulf of Mexico. New discoveries include locations such as American Samoa and New Zealand

DID YOU KNOW?

The Barreleye is a deep oceanic fish. You’re unlikely to stumble across one snorkeling at your local beach. Or even diving for that matter.

Recent observations in the wild are thanks entirely to submersibles technology.

Sneaky Tactics

As well as being consummate ambush predators, they’re clever little thieves. They steal the food from the stinging tentacles of siphonophores, also known as colonial jellies, before they get a chance to eat them.

Biologists suggest that they maneuver around the siphonophore’s tentacles to avoid being stung.

It is also believed that their transparent heads protect their eyes from the stings of colonial jellies.

Barreleye Predators

Marine biologists remain unaware of any specific barreleye predators. However, the absence of information or several hours of observations doesn’t mean they’re off the hook.

The word in the scientific world is, that further studies will expose the barreleye’s arch-nemesis. It’s pretty much a given that few if any aquatic creatures live free of predation.

A Misconception

When we think of a barreleye as prey, we tend to think first of these creatures when it’s fully grown.

the barreleye is vulnerable to countless creatures in the sea…

We need to remind ourselves that as eggs and fry, the barreleye is vulnerable to countless creatures in the sea…

From birds, small fish, big fish, turtles, whale sharks and, well…everything.

Surviving from egg to mature adult is a tough road for thousands of species. There’s no reason to assume it’s any different for the barreleye.

Threats from Human Activity

The greatest threat to many creatures of the marine environment is humans. Fortunately, the barreleye has no commercial value in terms of human consumption.

However, we know they are getting killed by accident as a result of commercial fishing bycatch. But, records of the actual numbers are not available.

They’re no threat to humans. So, there are no threats from human protective measures, such as beach netting for sharks.

DID YOU KNOW?

Because of the water depth at which they live, they are not at risk from tourist activities like species such as the whale shark

Under normal circumstances, divers can’t reach the depths of the barreleye habitation zone.

Pollution a Threat to All Marine Life

One can assume, however, that like all marine species, the barreleye is subject to significant habitat degradation as a result of human-induced pollution.

They are not registered as vulnerable or endangered. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has no designation for barreleyes…

This is positive news; the IUCN’s red list is not a place you want to see your species listed.

Love And Breeding

It’s believed that barreleyes are loners…

Being anti-social and living a solitary life as they do, makes starting relationships pretty tough, yes? 

Bars, social groups and internet dating are certainly out of the question for these creatures.

So how do they breed? How do boys meet girls?

No Need for Contact 

While scientific information is limited, it is believed the barreleye are pelagic spawners…

This means that females will lay eggs in water and males will release sperm in the water. With fertilization taking place in the water, it would appear there’s no barreleye romance…

The fertilized eggs float. They move with the flow of the current remaining in the shallows until hatching. They move progressively deeper in the water column as they mature.

Limited Technology

In the past, exploration using SOV’s required not only the ridiculously expensive submersibles but the expertise and infrastructure to deploy and operate them.

Large exploration ships, staffed by scientists, submariners and technicians from countless disciplines were required to man an expedition.

It would seem unlikely that sufficient funds would have been raised to ever explore a creature such as barreleyes.

The Future of Exploration is Small and Remote

The technology is now so advanced and sophisticated that SOV’s can be operated by just about anybody.

Frequently called underwater drones, very small SOV’s mitigate against the prohibitive costs that underwater exploration traditionally incurred.

Now, with a set of instructions, a modest boat, and some willing scientists, small underwater drones can be deployed to film the mysteries of the deep.

Catching a Barrel Eye

Catching a barreleye has certainly been achieved. Unfortunately, we’ve caught them accidentally in fishing nets and killed them.

Studying a live specimen requires less clunky methods. But how does one catch these creatures? The answer…It’s tricky.

Even the most clever of biologists using sophisticated devices struggle to catch these creatures. Fancy trying to catch fish that can see through the top of their heads. It’s a tough job, as this video illustrates.

Wrapping up The Barreleye

The Barreleye is not an alien. Nor is it a fantasy creature from the latest Disney production.

It’s got some awesome hunting skills, but as far as we know…

It has no mystical powers. And it’s not just weird-looking, it’s flat-out bizarre.

One thing is certain. These creatures are definitely one of the most fascinating members of the earth’s diverse aquatic community.

FUN FACT

Science is yet to discover anything quite like the barreleye fish. And it makes you wonder if it’s not one of mother nature’s tricks to confuse the curious.

Product of Evolution

Truth is, recent studies demonstrate there are no tricks here. In an evolutionary sense, barreleyes are a prime example of adaptation.

With tubular eyes on the top of its transparent head, large fins that allow for deft maneuvers in the deep ocean, these creatures are a masterpiece of evolutionary fitness.

There is More to Learn

Given that research breakthroughs are only recent, we can assume there’s at least a handful of marine biologists bursting at the test tube to learn more.

There’s plenty more to learn and further research is needed about the strange and wonderful barreleye fish, and no doubt, it’ll be as interesting as their transparent heads.

So stay tuned to the science journals for their regular fishy dispatches…

If you enjoyed the article, your friends might be curious too… feel free to share this and sate their curious minds as well! If you’re still up for more fish facts, check out the great hammerhead shark or the ocean sunfish.

Image Reference

Featured Image – Screenshot from Macropinna microstoma: A deep-sea fish with a transparent head and tubular eyes (00:32) uploaded by Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute Feb 23,2009 https://youtu.be/RM9o4VnfHJU?t=32