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Frogfishes, family Antennariidae, are a type of anglerfish in the order Lophiiformes. They are known as anglerfishes in Australia, where 'frogfish' refers to the Batrachoididae. Frogfishes are found in almost all tropical and subtropical oceans and seas around the world, the primary exception being the Mediterranean Sea. Frogfishes are small, short and stocky, and sometimes covered in spinules and other appendages to aid in camouflage. The camouflage aids in protection from predators and to enables them to lure prey. Many species can change colour; some are covered with other organisms such as algae or hydrozoa. In keeping with this camouflage, frogfishes typically move slowly, lying in wait for prey, and then striking extremely rapidly, in as little as 6 milliseconds. There are few traces of frogfishes in the fossil record, though ''Antennarius monodi'' is known from the Miocene of Algeria. ==Range== Frogfishes live in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Atlantic and Pacific, as well as in the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. Their habitat lies for the most part between the 20-degree isotherms, in areas where the surface level water usually has a temperature of 20 C (68 F) or more. They extend beyond the 20-degree isotherms in the area of the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands, along the Atlantic coast of the USA, on the south coast of Australia and the northern tip of New Zealand, coastal Japan, around Durban, South Africa and at Baja California, USA.〔(''Antennariidae: Frogfishes'' ) Tree of Life Web Project〕 The greatest diversity of species is in the Indo-Pacific region, with the highest concentration around Indonesia. In the small Lembeh Strait, north-east of Sulawesi, divers have found nine different species. Frogfish live generally on the ocean floor around coral or rock reefs, at most up to 100 metres (330 ft) deep. There are a few exceptions to these general limits. The Brackishwater Frogfish is at home in ocean waters as well as brackish and fresh water around river mouths. The Sargassumfish lives in clumps of drifting sargassum, which often floats into the deeper ocean and have been known to take the sargassumfish as far north as Norway. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「frogfish」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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