Description: Body elongate, but fairly robust anteriorly. Attenuate tail longer than the rest of the body. Anal fin long, extending all the way from the anus to the tip of the tail. Dorsal fin short-based. Top of snout and head scaleless; opercle scaled. Lateral line a distinct wide black sheath along the body. Otherwise dark grey or blue.
Global Distribution: Eastern Atlantic; Western Atlantic: USA and Bahamas; Indian Ocean. View Map
Reproduction: Males develop enlarged olfactory organs at maturity, suggesting they locate mates through pheromones. Pelagic leptocephalous larva.
Maturity:
Behavioural ecology: Hovers above or rests on bottom. Long slender pectorals are commonly held erect pointing upward and forward, these may serve a sensory function.
Population structure & migrations:
ECOLOGICAL FEATURES
Depth range: FishBase: 1100 - 3300 m
Habitat: Bathydemersal. Found on the lower slope, continental rise and upper abyss, primarily between 4° and 2°C isotherms.
Feeding habits: Feeds on polychaetes, crustaceans, echinoderms and echiurids.
Trophic level: FishBase: 3.3
FISHERIES
Commercial interest: Not commercial.
Conservation status: Global: Not evaluated.
Europe: Least concern.
Nutritional information & food safety:
REFERENCES
Carpenter K.E., ed. (2002). The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Volume 2: Bony fishes part 1 (Acipenseridae to Grammatidae). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes and American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special Publication No. 5. FAO, Rome, pp. 601-1374.
Hureau J.-C., ed. (1984-1985). Fishes of the North-Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO. Accessed through: Marine Species Identification Portal. World Wide Web electronic publication. http://species-identification.org (2014).
IUCN (2014). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org
Nieto A., Ralph G.M., Comeros-Raynal M.T., Kemp J., GarcÃa Criado M., Allen D.J., Dulvy N.K., Walls R.H.L., Russell B., Pollard D., GarcÃa S., Craig M., Collette B.B., Pollom R., Biscoito M., Labbish Chao N., Abella A., Afonso P., Ãlvarez H., Carpenter K.E., Clò S., Cook R., Costa M.J., Delgado J., Dureuil M., Ellis J.R., Farrell E.D., Fernandes P., Florin A-B., Fordham S., Fowle, S., Gil de Sola L., Gil Herrera J., Goodpaster A., Harvey M., Heessen H., Herler J., Jung A., Karmovskaya E., Keskin C., Knudsen S.W., Kobyliansky S., KovaÄić M., Lawson J.M., Lorance P., McCully Phillips S., Munroe T., Nedreaas K., Nielsen J., Papaconstantinou C., Polidoro B., Pollock C.M., Rijnsdorp A.D., Sayer C., Scott J., Serena F., Smith-Vaniz W.F., Soldo A., Stump E., Williams J.T. (2015). Europen Red List of Marine Fishes. IUCN and European Union, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 90 pp.
