Football fish

The Football Fish is an uncommon winter fish. It can be found between 4 pm and 9 am between the winter months of November and March. It sells for 2,500 Bells at Tom Nook's store.

In Wild World
"This is rather graphic, but football fish males can get attached to females... Literally attached! And then the males get absorbed into the females! I heard this, and I thought how lucky I was to have been born an owl, eh wot?"

In City Folk
"...The most striking detail of the football fish's life is the way multiple males are cared for by one female. You heard me correctly! A single female football fish will nourish and raise multiple males by herself! In contrast to the females, males don't make nests or gather food. Their sole task is to cling to the female! ...Another tidbit: only the females possess that amazing, glowing antenna! ...Romance certainly takes many forms in the animal kingdom, eh wot?"

Encyclopedia Information
Once the player has caught a particular fish or bug, they can find information about it in the bug or fish menus. Once the football fish has been caught, the following information can be found in the fish menu:

Wild World

 * Size: 23.4 inches
 * Habitat: Ocean
 * Season: Fall to Spring
 * Males are only a few centimeters long. Bacteria on the fish make them grow.

City Folk

 * Size: About 24 in.
 * Habitat: Ocean
 * Season: Winter
 * Their lanterns are extensions of their dorsal fins. Just the female's head lights up.

Further Information
The Himantolophus or 'Football Fish' is a type of 'anglerfish' found in tropical and sub-tropical waters in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. They live deep underwater. Both genders have a gelatinous flesh which thickens in the females, the bacteria on their body also gives them a "glowing" appearance. Females are alot bigger than males and they also have an esca (which is the growth coming from their head) which they use as a lure to catch other fish. The males lose their digestive system as they grow older, so therefore need to find a female before they die. Once they have found a female, they undergo a peculiar mating ceremony, where the male bites and latches onto the female and deteriorates while it is still attached to the female, once the mating is complete. This explains why only adult female Football Fish are ever found.