Caulophryne polynema

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Caulophryne polynema
C polynema.JPG
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Lophiiformes
Family: Caulophrynidae
Genus: Caulophryne
Species:
C. polynema
Binomial name
Caulophryne polynema
Regan, 1930

Caulophryne polynema is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Caulophrynidae, the fanfins. This species is a deepwater species which is found in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Like other deepwater anglerfishes it shows extreme sexual dimorphism with the males being much smaller than the females and acting as sexual parasites of the females.

Contents

Taxonomy

Caulophryne polynema was first formally described in 1930 by the English ichthyologist Charles Tate Regan with its type locality given as off Funchal Bay on Madeira in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. [2] This species is classified in the genus Caulophryne which is one of two genera within the family Caulophrynidae. The 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies the Caulophrynidae within the suborder Ceratioidei of the order Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes. [3]

Etymology

Caulophryne polynema is a species within the genus Caulophryne, this name is a combination of caulis, which mean" stem", an allusion to the stem-like base of the illicium, with phryne, meaning "toad", a suffix commonly used in the names of anglerfish genera. Its use may date as far back as Aristotle and Cicero, who referred to anglerfishes as "fishing-frogs" and "sea-frogs", respectively, possibly because of their resemblance to frogs and toads. The specific name, polynema, means "many threads" an allusion to the large number of filaments along the illicium, and possiblyalso to the many small filaments on the head and body. [4]

Description

Caulophryne polynema has a high degree of sexual dimorphism. The females have short, round bodies with large mouths. The lower jaw reaches back past the base of the pectoral fin. The teeth in the jaws are thin, backwards curving and depressible. They have highly elongated dorsal and anal fins, with the soft rays of these fins resembling long threads. There are 8 fin rays in the caudal fin. They do not have pelvic fins. The sensory cells of the lateral line system are at the tips of the filamentous rays of the dorsal and anal fins. They have a simple esca, or lure, which lacks a bulb but which may have filaments or appendages. The skin is naked and they do not have any dermal spines. The males are much smaller than the females and have more elongated bodies. They have large eyes and large nostrils, with large olfactory receptors. They have no teeth in the jaws, although there are tooth-like structures on the jaw bones which are used to attach to the larger female. The male do not have elongated dorsal and anal fins but so have large pectoral fins. [5] The illicium of this species is lightly coloured along its front edge and bears a large number of translucent, long filaments, the longest being up to 71% of the length of the illicium and most of these have their origins on the rear edge of the illicium. The esca is made up of an appendage on the rear to the side with a flattened, opaque, distal tip and another tapering appendage on its tip which has an opaque distal tip, there is a large number of filaments on the esca in individuals with a length greater than 44 mm (1.7 in), the number and length of filaments is less in smaller individuals. The dorsal fin has between 19 and 22 rays while the anal fin 17 to 19 rays. [6] The maximum published total length of this species is 21 cm (8.3 in). [7]

Distribution and habitat

Caulophryne polynema is found in the Atlantic Ocean from Florida in the west to Madeira in the east and as far south as Cape Verdeand as far north as Iceland. It is also been found off the Democratic Republic of Congo south to 28°S off Namibia. In the Eastern Pacific Ocean it has been recorded in Hawaii, Southern California and Baja California. This species is found in the mesopelagic and bathypelagic zones at depths between 585 and 2,100 m (1,919 and 6,890 ft). [1]

Biology

Caulophryne polynema is a predatory species in which the females lure prey into range with the esca and illicium. The males have spohisticated senory organs which they use to detect females. Once they have found a female they attach to it as a sexual parasite and eventually they merge with the female's circulatory and nervous systems. [1]

Related Research Articles

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Ceratiidae, the warty sea devils, caruncled seadevils or seadevils, are a family of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the suborder Ceratioidei, the deep-sea anglerfishes, in the anglerfish order Lophiiformes. The warty sea devils are sexually dimorphic with the small males being obligate sexual parasites of the much larger females. The fishes in this family are widely distributed from polar to tropical seas around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fanfin</span> Family of fishes

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oneirodidae</span> Family of fishes

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<i>Lasiognathus</i> Genus of fishes

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<i>Rhynchactis</i> Genus of fishes

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<i>Caulophryne</i> Genus of fishes

Caulophryne is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Caulophrynidae, the fanfins or hairy anglerfishes. These fishes are found throughout the non-polar oceans of the world.

Robia is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Caulophrynidae, the fanfins. Its only species is Robia legula which is known from a single specimen collected in the western central Pacific Ocean where it is found at depths of 1,000 to 1,500 metres.

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<i>Pentherichthys</i> Monotypic genus of fish

Pentherichthys is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Oneirodidae, the dreamers, a family of deep-sea anglerfishes. The only species in the genus is Pentherichthys atratus which is found in the bathypelagic zones of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. The males of this species are dwarfed and are not parasitic on the females.

<i>Caulophryne pelagica</i> Species of fish

Caulophryne pelagica is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Caulophrynidae, the fanfins. This species is a deepwater species which is found in the eastern Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean and Southern Ocean. Its biology is little known but similar species show extreme sexual dimorphism with the very small males seeking out and attaching themselves to the much larger females and becoming parasites of the females.

<i>Caulophryne jordani</i> Species of fish

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<i>Chaenophryne longiceps</i> Species of fish

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Gigantactis elsmani, Elsman's whipnose, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Gigantactinidae, the whipnose anglers. This species is found in the deeper waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Chaenophryne melanorhabdus is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Oneirodidae, the dreamers, a family of deep-sea anglerfishes. This predatory, deep-sea fish is found in the Pacific Ocean. Like other deep-sea anglerfishes, dreamers are sexually dimorphic, with the matamorphosed females dwarfing the metamorphosed males. The males are not sexual parasites.

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<i>Linophryne lucifer</i> Species of fish

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Arnold, R. (2015). "Caulophryne polynema". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T21112867A21910120. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T21112867A21910120.en . Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  2. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Caulophryne". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  3. Nelson, J.S.; Grande, T.C.; Wilson, M.V.H. (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 508–518. doi:10.1002/9781119174844. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6. LCCN   2015037522. OCLC   951899884. OL   25909650M.
  4. Christopher Scharpf (3 June 2024). "Order LOPHIIFORMES (part 2): Families CAULOPHRYNIDAE, NEOCERATIIDAE, MELANOCETIDAE, HIMANTOLOPHIDAE, DICERATIIDAE, ONEIRODIDAE, THAUMATICHTHYIDAE, CENTROPHRYNIDAE, CERATIIDAE, GIGANTACTINIDAE and LINOPHRYNIDAE". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  5. Dianne J. Bray. "Fanfin Anglers, CAULOPHRYNIDAE". Fishes of Australia. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
  6. Theodore W. Pietsch Ph.D. (2009). Oceanic Anglerfishes: Extraordinary Diversity in the Deep Sea. University of California Press. pp. 446–447. ISBN   978-0520942554.
  7. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Caulophryne polynema". FishBase . February 2024 version.