The aphotic zone, starting at 3,000 feet, is dark and lacks plants and cyanobacteria. Animals survive on carcasses, other animals, and bacteria. The zone is divided into the bathypelagic and abyssopelagic zones, with high pressure and decreasing biodiversity. Bioluminescent animals include the monkfish, while bottom eaters include blobfish and coffinfish. Rare sharks, such as the Megamouth Shark, also live in the deep sea.
Most of the ocean is completely dark. This is called the aphotic zone and begins at a depth of about 3,000 feet (0.9 km) and continues to the bottom, which usually reaches a depth of about 18,000 feet (5.5 km), except in ocean trenches, which can be deep up to 6.8km. In this zone, photosynthesis cannot take place, so the usual foundations of food webs, plants and cyanobacteria are absent. Instead, animals have to survive on falling carcasses, other animals and, in some rare cases, bacteria that use chemical energy sources such as sulphides and methane. Some animals that live in the aphotic zone include the gulper eel, giant squid, smaller squid, anglerfish, vampire squid, and numerous jellyfish.
The aphotic zone is divided into two levels: the bathypelagic zone and the abyssopelagic zone. The bathypelagic zone extends from approximately 3,300 feet (1 km) below the surface to 13,000 feet (4 km) below. Below this is the abyssopelagic zone, also called the abyssal zone, where pressures are extremely high (400 atmospheres and above) and biodiversity drastically decreases. Below this is the hadopelagic zone, which is used to refer to oceanic trenches.
Some of the ugliest and most evil looking fish in the world are found in these parts of the ocean including viper fish, fang tooth, dragon fish, lizard fish and many more. These fish often have hinged jaws, black scales, piercing eyes, and extremely sharp teeth. Most people wouldn’t want to meet them in a dark, flooded alley. Some of them get their name from their superficial resemblance to reptiles.
Many of the animals in the aphotic zone are bioluminescent, meaning they can produce their own light in one way or another. This can be used both for navigation and for luring small animals into their jaws. The monkfish is probably the most famous example, as it has a lure that protrudes in front of its mouth from a special appendage on its head.
The other fish don’t look as evil as blobs. These bottom eaters include the aptly named blobfish and coffinfish, which walk along the seabed using leg-like fins. Sea cucumbers and giant isopods, foot-long relatives of the woodlice, can also be found at the bottom. The deep sea is also home to numerous unusual and rare sharks, such as the Megamouth Shark, hailed as one of the most impressive marine animal discoveries of the last century.
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