Maximum length not far short of 2 metres. The body, which is greyish or sandy above and white below, has a distinctive shape, open to different interpretations. The name monkfish* refers to the fancied appearance of a cowl on its head. Names with angel in them were bestowed because the large pectoral fins were thought to resemble wings, although the Dutch, for example, seem just as ready to call the fish a sea devil as a sea angel, and sea devil occurs in Cornwall also. My own preference is for puppy-fish, another Cornish name. Mongrel skate (cited from the Firth of Forth) is too derogatory.
