| Eptatretus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Eptatretus stoutii | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Infraphylum: | Agnatha |
| Class: | Myxini |
| Order: | Myxiniformes |
| Family: | Myxinidae |
| Subfamily: | Eptatretinae |
| Genus: | Eptatretus Cloquet, 1819 |
| Type species | |
| Gastrobranche dombey Lacepède, 1798 | |
| Synonyms | |
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There are currently 49 recognized species in this genus: [1] [2] [3]
Hagfish, of the class Myxini and order Myxiniformes, are eel-shaped jawless fish. They are the only known living animals that have a skull but no vertebral column, although hagfish do have rudimentary vertebrae. Hagfish are marine predators and scavengers. Hagfish defend themselves against predators by releasing copious amounts of slime from glands in their skin.
A craniate is a member of the Craniata, a proposed clade of chordate animals with a skull of hard bone or cartilage. Living representatives are the Myxini (hagfishes), Hyperoartia, and the much more numerous Gnathostomata. Formerly distinct from vertebrates by excluding hagfish, molecular and anatomical research in the 21st century has led to the reinclusion of hagfish as vertebrates, making living craniates synonymous with living vertebrates.
Cyclostomi, often referred to as Cyclostomata, is a group of vertebrates that comprises the living jawless fishes: the lampreys and hagfishes. Both groups have jawless mouths with horny epidermal structures that function as teeth called ceratodontes, and branchial arches that are internally positioned instead of external as in the related jawed fishes. The name Cyclostomi means "round mouths". It was named by Joan Crockford-Beattie.
Eptatretus springeri, the Gulf hagfish, is a bathydemersal vertebrate which lives primarily in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. It has been observed feeding at and around brine pools: areas of high salinity which resemble lakes on the ocean floor that do not mix with the surrounding water due to difference in density. The high salt content, approximately 200 ppt compared to 35 ppt for standard seawater, creates a buoyant surface which renders oceanic submersibles unable to descend into the pool. It is believed that the inside of the pools only supports microbial life, while the majority of macroscopic life, such as methane-utilizing mussels, exists on the edges. The Gulf hagfish feeds on the primary producers of these environments, as well as other predators.
The broadgilled hagfish or New Zealand hagfish, also known by its Māori language name tuere, is a hagfish found around New Zealand and the Chatham Islands as well as around the south and east coasts of Australia, at depths between 1 and 900 metres.
The Pacific hagfish is a species of hagfish. It lives in the mesopelagic to abyssal Pacific ocean, near the ocean floor. It is a jawless fish and has a body plan that resembles early paleozoic fish. They are able to excrete prodigious amounts of slime in self-defense.
Myxine is a genus of hagfish, from the Greek μυξῖνος. It is the type genus of the class Myxini.
Eptatretus bischoffii is a common hagfish of the genus Eptatretus. Its maximum length is 55 centimetres (22 in). It lives in a demersal, non-migratory, marine habitat with its depth range between 8–50 m. It can survive in only temperate zones. These organisms are found in the South Pacific, mainly, Chile. It is harmless to humans.
Myxine glutinosa, known as the Atlantic hagfish in North America, and often simply as the hagfish in Europe, is a species of jawless fish of the genus Myxine.
Nemamyxine is a genus of hagfish.
Neomyxine biniplicata, the slender hagfish, is a species of hagfish endemic to New Zealand. It is known from along the east coast, from the northern end of the Bay of Plenty to Kaikōura at depths of 35–396 m, and is found on silty to coarse sediments and rocky seabeds.
Neomyxine is a genus of hagfish found in the Pacific Ocean around New Zealand.
Rubicundus is a genus of hagfishes, the only member of the subfamily Rubicundinae. All species in it were formerly classified in Eptatretus. R. eos, R. lakeside, and R. rubicundus are known from single specimens caught in the Tasman Sea, Galápagos, and Taiwan, respectively. They are named after the distinctive red coloration that all species share.
Nemamyxine elongata, the bootlace hagfish, is a species of hagfish in the genus Nemamyxine. Distribution, abundance, and natural history are not known. Only two specimens have been collected. One, dead, was found in a net in the Kaituna River, and thought to have been a fishery discard. The other was collected alive during a trawl at 132-140m in the Canterbury Bight. The larger specimen was 867 mm TL but maximum size is unknown. One specimen was a female with small eggs similar to those of other hagfish species..
Neomyxine caesiovitta, the blueband hagfish, is a species of hagfish endemic to New Zealand. This species can reach a length of 64.8 centimetres (25.5 in) SL.
The white-headed hagfish is a species of jawless fish of the family Myxinidae (hagfish).
Rubicundus eos, also known as the pink hagfish, is a species of jawless fish in the family Myxinidae.
Rubicundus lakeside, the Lakeside hagfish, is a species of jawless fish in the family Myxinidae.
Myxine fernholmi, also known as Fernholm's hagfish, is a species of jawless fish in the family Myxinidae. It is named after Swedish ichthyologist Bo Fernholm.
Rubicundus lopheliae, the lophelia hagfish, is a species of jawless fish in the family Myxinidae.
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