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Animal profile

Common Fangtooth

Anoplogaster cornuta

ActinopterygiiDeep open ocean, recorded from about 500 to 5,000 metres

Field profile

The common fangtooth is a stocky dark-bodied deep-sea fish reaching roughly 16 centimetres. Adults have a large head, rough scales and enormous teeth for their size. Juveniles look so different, with long head spines and small teeth, that they were once described as a separate genus.

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

2025-03-10

Common Fangtooth

The fangtooth grew sockets in its own skull

The two longest lower teeth of the common fangtooth are so large relative to its skull that the fish has a pair of pockets on either side of its brain for them to slide into when the mouth closes.

Read with evidence →

Common Fangtooth | Daily Animal Facts