Flat needlefish | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Beloniformes |
Family: | Belonidae |
Genus: |
Ablennes D. S. Jordan & Fordice, 1887 [2] |
Species: | A. hians
|
Binomial name | |
Ablennes hians
Valenciennes, 1846
| |
Synonyms | |
|
The flat needlefish (Ablennes hians), or barred longtom, [3] the only known member of the genus Ablennes, is a marine fish of the family Belonidae. Flat needlefish are considered gamefish, frequently caught with the help of artificial lights, [4] but are not often eaten because of their green-colored flesh. [5]
The generic name Ablennes – formerly misspelled Athlennes – means ‘without mucosity’, [6] from the ancient Greek privative a- prefix and blennos (‘mucus’). Its specific name hians is Latin for "gaping".
Although they have no spines, they do have several soft rays. About 23-26 rays are on the dorsal fin and 24-28 are on the anal fin. [7] They have 86-93 vertebrae. [7] Dorsally, flat needlefish are blueish, white ventrally, with dark blotches and 12-14 vertical bars in the middle of their bodies. [8] Flat needlefish have elongated bodies, with scythe-shaped pectoral and anal fins. [7] They also have a dark lobe on the posterior part of their dorsal fins. [7]
The longest recorded flat needlefish measured 140 cm. [9] Measurements for flat needlefish body length do not include their caudal fins and heads because the fish's long jaws are often broken off. [7] The largest recorded weight for a flat needlefish was 4.8 kg. [9]
Flat needlefish are found worldwide in tropical and temperate seas. [7] In the Eastern Atlantic, they are known from Cape Verde and Dakar to Moçamedes in Angola. [10] In the western Atlantic, they are known from the Chesapeake Bay south to Brazil. [11] They are found throughout the Indian Ocean, [7] and in the western Pacific from the southern islands of Japan to Australia [12] and Tuvalu. [13] A few specimens have been collected from Syria to Israel in the Mediterranean Sea, [14] likely migrants from the Red Sea.
Flat needlefish usually live in neritic ocean waters near islands, [15] estuaries, [16] and near coastal rivers, [17] where they feed on smaller fish [4] and occasionally gather in large schools. [5]
Flat needlefish lay eggs, which attach themselves to floating debris by filaments on the surface of each egg. [18] Only the left gonad in both sexes is developed, and in males, the right gonad is sometimes wholly absent. [19]
The original publication, Jordan & Fordice, 1886, p. 359, gives the derivation of the generic name in question with English equivalent. In this derivation there is an evident lapsus calami, a θ being inadvertently written instead of a β. In transliterating the Greek into Latin this lapsus was not noticed, and the Latin name was written Athlennes instead of Ablennes. [...] 'without mucosity' [...]
{{
cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
link)
Flat needlefish | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Beloniformes |
Family: | Belonidae |
Genus: |
Ablennes D. S. Jordan & Fordice, 1887 [2] |
Species: | A. hians
|
Binomial name | |
Ablennes hians
Valenciennes, 1846
| |
Synonyms | |
|
The flat needlefish (Ablennes hians), or barred longtom, [3] the only known member of the genus Ablennes, is a marine fish of the family Belonidae. Flat needlefish are considered gamefish, frequently caught with the help of artificial lights, [4] but are not often eaten because of their green-colored flesh. [5]
The generic name Ablennes – formerly misspelled Athlennes – means ‘without mucosity’, [6] from the ancient Greek privative a- prefix and blennos (‘mucus’). Its specific name hians is Latin for "gaping".
Although they have no spines, they do have several soft rays. About 23-26 rays are on the dorsal fin and 24-28 are on the anal fin. [7] They have 86-93 vertebrae. [7] Dorsally, flat needlefish are blueish, white ventrally, with dark blotches and 12-14 vertical bars in the middle of their bodies. [8] Flat needlefish have elongated bodies, with scythe-shaped pectoral and anal fins. [7] They also have a dark lobe on the posterior part of their dorsal fins. [7]
The longest recorded flat needlefish measured 140 cm. [9] Measurements for flat needlefish body length do not include their caudal fins and heads because the fish's long jaws are often broken off. [7] The largest recorded weight for a flat needlefish was 4.8 kg. [9]
Flat needlefish are found worldwide in tropical and temperate seas. [7] In the Eastern Atlantic, they are known from Cape Verde and Dakar to Moçamedes in Angola. [10] In the western Atlantic, they are known from the Chesapeake Bay south to Brazil. [11] They are found throughout the Indian Ocean, [7] and in the western Pacific from the southern islands of Japan to Australia [12] and Tuvalu. [13] A few specimens have been collected from Syria to Israel in the Mediterranean Sea, [14] likely migrants from the Red Sea.
Flat needlefish usually live in neritic ocean waters near islands, [15] estuaries, [16] and near coastal rivers, [17] where they feed on smaller fish [4] and occasionally gather in large schools. [5]
Flat needlefish lay eggs, which attach themselves to floating debris by filaments on the surface of each egg. [18] Only the left gonad in both sexes is developed, and in males, the right gonad is sometimes wholly absent. [19]
The original publication, Jordan & Fordice, 1886, p. 359, gives the derivation of the generic name in question with English equivalent. In this derivation there is an evident lapsus calami, a θ being inadvertently written instead of a β. In transliterating the Greek into Latin this lapsus was not noticed, and the Latin name was written Athlennes instead of Ablennes. [...] 'without mucosity' [...]
{{
cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
link)