Owlfish spotted in the depths of the Monterey Bay

MONTEREY BAY, Calif. (KION) An owlfish has been spotted in the depths of the Monterey Bay by researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.

The fish's official name is Pseudobathylagus milleri, however they are called owlfish because they have eyes almost as big as their head. Researchers say the fish live throughout the Northern parts of the Pacific Ocean, and add that they a part of the family Bathylagidae, which are also known as blacksmelts.

They say blacksmelts are relatively common in the deep sea, and can live in depths of over 19,685 feet.

According to researchers at MBARI, they observe fish in the Monterey Bay between a few hundred meters to over 2,000 meters, or 6,561 feet. This specific owlfish was observed at 3,986 feet by the institute's ROV Tiburon, a submersible machine use for sampling and data collection.