| Lycodes esmarkii | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Scorpaeniformes |
| Family: | Zoarcidae |
| Genus: | Lycodes |
| Species: | L. esmarkii |
| Binomial name | |
| Lycodes esmarkii Collett, 1875 | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
Lycodes esmarkii, Esmark's eelpout or the greater eelpout, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. This species is found in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Lycodes esmarkii was first formally described by the Norwegian zoologist Robert Collett with the type locality given as Varanger Fjord in northern Norway. [3] The specific name honours Collett's fellow Norwegian zoologist Lauritz Martin Esmark, who was the first to recognise that this taxon was a new species but who pernmitted Collett to describe it as such. [4]
Lycodes esmarkii has a dark uper body with a pale lower body, the two colour areas being sharply demarcated, there are between 4 and 9 irregular, pale bands which vary from simple stripes to more complex shapes. A white bar runs across the head and there are two spots above the lobes of the operculum. The peritoneum and inside of the mouth are black. The elongate body has a depth at the origin of the anal fin of between 11% and 14% of its total length. This is a long-tailed eelpout, with the distance from the snout to the origin of the anal fin being equivalent of 36% to 44% of the total length. The head is moderate in size being equal to 21% to 25% of the total length. The origin of the dorsal fin is over the centre of the pectoral fin, the pectoral fins are rounded and of moderate length. There is a double lateral line with a lower branch running near to the anal fin and a branch along the middle of the flank. The pores on the head are small and the body has a dense covering of scales. The length of the row of teeth on the premaxilla is longer than the row on the palatine. This is a large species and has benn recorded as attaining a total length of 102 cm (40 in) off Iceland. [5]
Lycodes esmarkii is found in the North Atlantic Ocean from Virginia to Labrador, as well as Baffin Island, Greenland, Iceland and the Faroe Islands, It is also found along the Norwegian coast, the southeastern Barents Sea and Svalbard. It occurs along the Wyville Thomson Ridge as far south as the Shetland Islands and as far south as Stadt in Norway. The greater eelpout is a bathdemersal species which occurs at depths between 143 and 1,090 m (469 and 3,576 ft) where the temperature varies between −0.6 and 5.6 °C (30.9 and 42.1 °F). It is found on soft substrates. [5]
Lycodes esmarkii has a diet which is heavily dominated by brittle stars. [2] ). Females reach sexual maturity at a length of around 35 cm (14 in) while for males it is attained at around 38 cm (15 in) in the Davis Strait. They may reach an age of 12 years, based on otoliths sampled from a specimen with a total length of 63 cm (25 in) taken in the Barents Sea. [5]
The viviparous eelpout, also known as the, viviparous blenny and European eelpout is species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is notable for being ovoviviparous and gives birth to live larvae. It is a common soup ingredient in Mediterranean countries. The bones are of greenish colour, due to a harmless pigment. Their skin is slimy and the colour is variable.
Zoarces is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is the only genus in the subfamily Zoarcinae. These eelpouts are found in the northern Atlantic and northern Pacific Oceans.
Bothrocara is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. They are found in the Pacific Ocean with one species reaching the southwestern Atlantic Ocean.
Lycodes is a genus of zoarcid fish in the subfamily Lycodinae. It is the most species-rich genus in its taxonomic family as well as in the Arctic Ocean and adjacent waters. They occupy both shallow waters and deeper waters down to 3000 meters. A few species can occur in brackish waters.
Lycodes vahlii, Vahl's eelpout or the checker eelpout, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is native to coasts of Northern Atlantic Ocean.
Lycodichthys is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. They are found in the Southern Ocean.
Lycenchelys is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. The genus has almost cosmopolitan distribution.
Lycodes terraenovae, also called the Newfoundland eelpout, Atlantic eelpout or fish doctor, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is found in deep waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
Pachycara crassiceps is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is found in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean.
Gymnelinae is a subfamily of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. Most species are found in the North Pacific Ocean but one genus is cosmopolitan, and another is endemic to the Southern Ocean.
Andriashevia is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamiy Gymnelinae of the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts, its only species is Andriasheevia aptera. It is found in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, where it occurs off the Pacific coast of Japan. It appears to be a demersal fish which is associated with large red gorgonian corals, e.g. Paragorgia. Examinations of the stomach contents of collected specimens has shown that its diet is mainly crustaceans but it likely also feeds on encrusting invertebrates which it searches for among coral branches and the hard substrates they live in. This species attains a maximum published standard length of 19.3 cm (7.6 in). Unlike other species in the subfamily Gymnelinae, this taxon has no pectoral fins. The genus name honours the Soviet ichthyologist Anatoly Petrovich Andriashev for his work on fishes of the Russian Far East and especially eelpouts. The specific name, aptera means "without wings" and refers to the absence of pectoral fins.
Lycodinae is a subfamily of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. These eelpouts are found are in all the world's oceans, with a number of species being found off southern South America.
Austrolycus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. The two species in this genus are found in the southeastern Pacific Ocean and the western South Atlantic Ocean off southern South America and the Falkland Islands.
Lycenchelys muraena, the moray wolf eel, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is found in the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans.
Lycodes gracilis, Vahl's eelpout or the gracile eelpout, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is found in the eastern North Atlantic Ocean and adjacent areas of the Arctic Ocean.
Lycodonus is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. The species in this genus are found in the North and Southern Atlantic Ocean. These fishes are sometimes called scutepouts.
Lycogrammoides is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. Its only species is Lycogrammoides schmidti, a rare species of the Sea of Okhotsk in the northwestern Pacific Ocean.
The bearded eelpout is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. This species is the only species in the monospecific genus Lyconema. It is found in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
Lycozoarces is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts, its only species being Lycozoarces regani. It is the only genus in the monogeneric subfamily Lycozoarinae. This taxon occurs in the northwestern Pacific Ocean in the Sea of Okhotsk and the Tatar Strait in the northern Sea of Japan
The Arctic staghorn sculpin is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. This sculpin is found in the Arctic Ocean and the northern Atlantic Ocean.
