Midnight Zone

Conditions in this zone

• •Depth: about 1,000–4,000 metres
• •Permanent darkness — no sunlight reaches this far
• •Near-freezing temperatures and crushing pressure
• •Food mostly drifts down as 'marine snow' from above

Animal profiles in this zone

Marine animals FaunaHub profiles that are documented in this zone. Many also occur in other layers.

• 

  Anglerfish

  Deep-sea anglerfishes are documented in the dark midwater, commonly from the twilight into the midnight zone.

  ●Broad / widespread

  Source: WoRMS, Animal Diversity Web, IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

• 

  Deep-Sea Coral

  Cold-water corals grow on seamounts, slopes, and ridges across a wide depth range, into the deep ocean.

  ●Broad / widespread

  Source: NOAA Ocean Exploration, NOAA Fisheries, Smithsonian Ocean

• 

  Dumbo Octopus

  Among the deepest-living octopuses, documented across a wide range of deep-ocean depths.

  ●Broad / widespread

  Source: WoRMS, Animal Diversity Web, IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

• 

  Giant Isopod

  Scavengers of the deep seafloor, documented across a wide depth range into the abyssal zone.

  ●Broad / widespread

  Source: WoRMS, Animal Diversity Web, IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

• 

  Hatchetfish

  Marine hatchetfishes are documented in the twilight zone, ranging into the upper midnight; many migrate vertically.

  ●Broad / widespread

  Source: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Smithsonian Ocean, WoRMS

• 

  Barreleye Fish

  Barreleyes are documented in the deep twilight zone, ranging into darker layers; known mainly from a few live observations.

  ●Representative

  Source: Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), NOAA Ocean Exploration, WoRMS

• 

  Black Dragonfish

  Documented in the deep twilight and midnight zones; females are reported to migrate upward at night to hunt.

  ●Representative

  Source: Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), NOAA Ocean Exploration, WoRMS

• 

  Gulper Eel

  Reported from the deep open ocean, commonly the bathypelagic midnight zone.

  ●Representative

  Source: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Smithsonian Ocean, WoRMS

• 

  Vampire Squid

  Lives in cold, low-oxygen midwater — commonly the twilight into the upper midnight zone (the oxygen-minimum zone).

  ●Representative

  Source: Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), Smithsonian Ocean, WoRMS

• 

  Yeti Crab

  Documented at hydrothermal vents and cold seeps on the deep seafloor, where chemosynthesis fuels the community.

  ●Representative

  Source: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), WoRMS