see text Handfish are marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Brachionichthyidae, a group which comprises five genera and 14 extant species and which is classified within the suborder Antennarioidei in the order Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes.

[9] The biology of handfishes is poorly known and their typically small population sizes and restricted distributions make them highly vulnerable to disturbance.

[citation needed] Like other anglerfish, they possess an illicium, a modified dorsal fin ray above the mouth, but it is short and does not appear to be used as a fishing lure.

Suggested causes may include disturbance of benthic communities and predation on egg masses by the introduced northern Pacific seastar, habitat modification through increased siltation, heavy metal contamination or urban effluent.

The lack of a pelagic larval stage and low rates of dispersal may be responsible for their restricted distributions and may also have an impact on handfishes ability to recolonise areas where they once occurred.

[18][19] In October 2021, the endangered and very rare pink handfish (Brachiopsilus dianthus[20]) was seen for the first time since 1999, in footage from a camera placed on the sea bed off Tasmania at a depth of 150 m (490 ft).