Lizardfishes and Relatives: Aulopiformes

Scientists know little about the behavior of lizardfishes and their relatives. They do know that the bottom-dwelling species use camouflage and make very little movement. These characteristics allow the fish to ambush prey and avoid predators. These fishes swim in short, rapid bursts and then bury themselves. The fishes that live in middle depths and deep water may swim rapidly in pursuit of prey or food animals. Smaller species may hover in the water and swim only to hunt prey or to travel to the surface at night. Some species swim with their tails down and their heads up.

Lizardfishes and their relatives have two mating systems. In one system male and female sexes are separate. Fishes that live in shallow water spawn in the open water and release eggs that when fertilized (FUR-teh-lyzed), or penetrated by sperm, drift to the bottom for development. In the other mating system the fish can be both male and female at the same time and reproduce by fertilizing themselves.