Echiodon drummondii

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Echiodon drummondii
FMIB 46245 Drummond's Echiodon.jpeg
Drawing from A History of the Fishes of the British Islands (1877)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Ophidiiformes
Family: Carapidae
Genus: Echiodon
Species:
E. drummondii
Binomial name
Echiodon drummondii
(Thompson, 1837)
Synonyms [2]
  • Echiodon drummondiThompson, 1837

Echiodon drummondii, sometimes called Drummond's echiodon or Drummond's pearlfish, [3] and in Ireland simply called the pearlfish, [4] is a species of fish in the family Carapidae (pearlfish). [5] [6]

Contents

It is named for James Lawson Drummond, who collected the holotype at Carnlough, Ireland in 1836. [4] [7]

Description

Echiodon drummondii is reddish in colour with a silvery abdomen, operculum and iris and dark markings on the head. [8] It has an eel-like body, up to 30 cm (1 ft) in length, making it among the largest of the family. [9] Its eyes are large, and lateral line is very faint.

Habitat

Echiodon drummondii is bathydemersal, living at depths of 52–403 m (171–1,322 ft) in the North Sea and the waters surrounding Great Britain and Ireland; [8] it has also been recorded off Iceland and the Azores. [2]

Behaviour

Echiodon drummondii can be free-living and feeds on small invertebrates, fish and bottom-dwellers. [8] It is also known to live inside sea cucumbers; the cucumber opens its anus to breathe in, and the pearlfish swims in. [10] [4] Eggs have been discovered in the seabed off County Kerry. [11]

References

  1. ↑ Cobián Rojas, D.; Espinosa-Perez, H.; Vega-Cendejas, M. (2019). "Echiodon drummondii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T18138815A132966644. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T18138815A132966644.en . Retrieved 21 July 2025.
  2. 1 2 Bailly, Nicolas (2008). "Echiodon drummondii Thompson, 1837". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species.
  3. ↑ Hamilton, Robert (June 25, 1843). "The Natural History of British Fishes. Vol. I-[II] ..." W.H. Lizars, ... S. Highley, ... London; and W. Curry, jun. and Company Dublin. – via Google Books.
  4. 1 2 3 Foster, John Wilson; Chesney, Helena C. G. (June 25, 1998). Nature in Ireland: A Scientific and Cultural History. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. ISBN   9780773518179 – via Google Books.
  5. ↑ "Taxonomy browser (Echiodon drummondii)". www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.
  6. ↑ Cohen, Daniel M.; Nielsen, Jørgen G. G. (June 25, 1978). Guide to the Identification of Genera of the Fish Order Ophidiiformes with a Tentative Classification of the Order. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service – via Google Books.
  7. ↑ The Irish Naturalists' Journal. Vol. 17. I.N.J. Committee. June 25, 1971. p.  213 – via Google Books.
  8. 1 2 3 Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Echiodon drummondii". FishBase .
  9. ↑ Nelson, Joseph S.; Grande, Terry C.; Wilson, Mark V. H. (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Hoboken: John Wiley and Sons. p. 317. doi:10.1002/9781119174844. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6.
  10. ↑ "Pearlfish from a Sea Cucumber | Smithsonian Ocean". ocean.si.edu.
  11. ↑ Kennedy, M.; Champ, T. (June 25, 1971). "Occurance [sic] of Eggs of Echiodon drummondi Thompson on the Coast of County Kerry". Irish Fisheries Investigations Series B. Marine – via oar.marine.ie.


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