(Lophius budegassa) see text Goosefishes, sometimes called anglers or monkfishes, are a family, the Lophiidae, of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes.

The goosefish family, Lophiidae, was first proposed as a genus in 1810 by the French polymath and naturalist Constantine Samuel Rafinesque.

[3] The frontmost spine, the illicium, has a flap of flesh, the esca, at its tip and is used as a lure to attract prey to within reach of the cavernous mouth.

The lower jaw has a fringe of small flaps along its edge and these extend along the head onto the flanks.

[13] The goosefishes, family Lophiidae are found in the temperate, tropical, and subtropical Atlantic Indian and Pacific Oceans.