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Barreleye | Daily Animal Facts

Animal profile

Barreleye

Macropinna microstoma

ActinopterygiiMesopelagic waters, commonly observed between about 400 and 800 metres

Field profile

The barreleye is a small deep-sea fish with a transparent dome over the top of its head, through which two green tubular eyes are visible. The dark spots on the front of its face are nasal organs, not eyes. It reaches roughly 15 centimetres in length.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2023-04-01

Barreleye

The barreleye rotates its eyes inside a clear dome

Live observations at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute showed that the barreleye's tubular eyes are not fixed upward. They pivot forward within a fluid-filled transparent shield that earlier net-caught specimens had always lost.

Read with evidence →