Longfin smooth-head

Longfin smooth-head
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Alepocephaliformes
Family:	Alepocephalidae
Genus:	Conocara
Species:	C. macropterum
Binomial name
Conocara macropterum (Vaillant, 1888)
Synonyms [2]
Alepocephalus macropterus(Vaillant, 1888) Conocara macdonaldi(Goode & Bean, 1896) Conocara macroptera(Vaillant, 1888) Conocara mcdonaldi(Goode & Bean, 1896)

The longfin smooth-head (Conocara macropterum) is a species of fish in the family Alepocephalidae. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

Description

Drawing of Conocara macropterum.

The longfin smooth-head is pale brown to black in colour; its name derives from its anal fin, which has a long base and 35–39 finrays. Its maximum length is 34 centimetres (13 in). ^[6] They grow rapidly from infancy; few juveniles of intermediate size are found. ^[7]

Habitat

The longfin smooth-head lives in the temperate and tropical Atlantic Ocean, and in the Gulf of Mexico; ^{[8] [9] [10]} it is bathypelagic, living at depths of 800–2,200 m (2,600–7,200 ft), being most common at 1,200–1,800 m (3,900–5,900 ft). ^[6]

Behaviour

The longfin smooth-head lays large eggs, up to 6 mm (0.24 in) in diameter, and are believed to be buried in redds, similar to how the Atlantic salmon buries its eggs. ^{[11] [12]} A detritivore, the longfin smooth-head is recorded to ingest sediment from the seafloor, taking up with it microfauna such as foraminiferans. ^{[13] [14]}

References

1. Hulley, P. (2015). "Conocara macropterum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T15148522A15148525. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T15148522A15148525.en . Retrieved 6 October 2024.
2. Bailly, Nicolas (2008). "Conocara macropterum (Vaillant, 1888)". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species.
3. Richards, William J. (August 8, 2005). Early Stages of Atlantic Fishes: An Identification Guide for the Western Central North Atlantic, Two Volume Set. CRC Press. ISBN   9780203500217 – via Google Books.
4. "Taxonomy browser (Conocara macropterum)". www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.
5. "Conocara macropterum | NBN Atlas". species.nbnatlas.org.
6. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Conocara macropterum". FishBase .
7. Merrett, N. R.; Haedrich, R. L. (October 31, 1997). Deep-Sea Demersal Fish and Fisheries. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN   9780412394102 – via Google Books.
8. Felder, Darryl L.; Camp, David K. (June 29, 2009). Gulf of Mexico Origin, Waters, and Biota: Volume I, Biodiversity. Texas A&M University Press. ISBN   9781603440943 – via Google Books.
9. Nations, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United (October 10, 2002). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. ISBN   9789251048269 – via Google Books.
10. "Conocara macropterum". Global Biodiversity Information Facility .
11. Priede, I. G. (August 10, 2017). Deep-Sea Fishes: Biology, Diversity, Ecology and Fisheries. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9781107083820 – via Google Books.
12. "Marine Species Identification Portal : Longfin smooth-head - Conocara macroptera". species-identification.org.
13. Deep-Sea Fishes. Academic Press. October 1, 1997. ISBN   9780080585406 – via Google Books.
14. Encyclopedia of Fish Physiology: From Genome to Environment. Academic Press. June 1, 2011. ISBN   9780080923239 – via Google Books.