Southern chimera | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Chondrichthyes |
Order: | Chimaeriformes |
Family: | Chimaeridae |
Genus: | Chimaera |
Species: | C. fulva |
Binomial name | |
Chimaera fulva Didier, Last & White, 2008 | |
The southern chimaera (Chimaera fulva) is a chimaera species in the family Chimaeridae. It lives in Australia, usually in marine waters 780 to 1095 meters deep. It can grow to a maximum length of at least 100 centimeters, and is sometimes confused with Chimaera obscura , a similar species in its genus.
Male specimens of the southern chimaera can grow up to a maximum total length of 100 centimeters, and females can grow to 118.7 centimeters. [2] Its coloring ranges from a silver pink to a pale brown. Its dorsal spine is short, and males have large claspers, which contain bristles at the end. [3] The species is sometimes confused with Chimaera obscura , a related species commonly known as the shortspine chimaera. However, the species are different morphological; notably, C. fulva is lighter in color than C. obscura. [4] [1]
The southern chimaera is a bathydemersal marine species, typically living in waters 780 to 1095 meters deep, though it has been found in shallower waters as well. The species is oviparous. [3] [1]
The southern chimaera is distributed in areas off the coast of Australia, from the New South Wales in the east to Western Australia. It lives in the southwest Pacific Ocean and the eastern Indian Ocean. It is a relatively uncommon species, but its population is currently stable. The exact population of the species is unknown. [1]
The species is a common bycatch by fisheries in southern Australia. It is estimated that the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery catches roughly 12 tonnes of the species a year as a bycatch. Despite these issues, there are currently no conservation actions taking place for the species. IUCN lists it as being of Least Concern. [1]
The gulper shark is a long and slender dogfish usually about three feet in length generally found in deep, murky waters all around the world. It is a light grayish brown, paler ventrally, with a long snout and large greenish eyes. This deep water shark has two dorsal fins with long, grooved spines and the second dorsal fin smaller than the first. Its upper teeth are blade-like and lower have finely serrated edges. This tertiary consumer feeds on mainly fish such as bony fish, but also cephalopods such as squid and other invertebrates like crustaceans. The gulper shark is currently an endangered species mainly because of exploitation by humans and their abnormally long gestation period and low fecundity, preventing their population from recovering.
The alfonsino, also known as the alfonsin, longfinned beryx, red bream, or imperador, is a species of deepwater berycid fish of the order Beryciformes. It can be found in temperate and subtropical ocean waters nearly worldwide, though it is uncommon. It is typically associated with deep-sea corals, and schools are known to form over seamounts. Adults are demersal and search for prey along the ocean floor, primarily fish, cephalopods, and crustaceans. Like other members of its family, it is remarkably long-lived, with individuals reaching ages of up to 69 years, and possibly longer. It can reach sizes of up to 1 m (3.3 ft) in length and 2.5 kg (5.5 lb) in weight and is targeted by commercial fisheries. Its low reproductive rate and the time it takes for juveniles to mature make it vulnerable to expanding deep-sea fisheries, but it is listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) due to its extensive range.
The gummy shark, also known as the Australian smooth hound, flake, sweet william or smooth dog-shark, is a shark in the family Triakidae. These small to medium-sized bottom-dwelling sharks are found mostly in, but are not limited to, the area around the southern seas of Australia and is commonly baited and fished for cuisine because of its taste and market prices. According to a 2021 paper by White, Arunrugstichai & Naylorn (2021), Mustelus walkeri is the same animal as M. antarcticus. One theory is that M. walkeri is a subpopulation of M. antarcticus.
The New Zealand eagle ray or Australian eagle ray is an eagle ray of the family Myliobatidae, found in bays, estuaries, and near rocky reefs around New Zealand and southern Australia on the inner continental shelf. It is a common species and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".
The devil fish or giant devil ray is a species of ray in the family Mobulidae. It is currently listed as endangered, mostly due to bycatch mortality in unrelated fisheries.
The carpenter's chimaera, also known as the giant chimaera or the giant purple chimaera, is a species of fish in the family Chimaeridae.
The pointy-nosed blue chimaera, also known as the pointy-nosed blue ratfish, Ray Troll's chimaera or abyssal ghostshark, is a species of deep-sea fish in the family Chimaeridae.
This is a glossary of terms used in fisheries, fisheries management and fisheries science.
Chimaera monstrosa, also known as the rabbit fish or rat fish, is a northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean species of cartilaginous fish in the family Chimaeridae. The rabbit fish is known for its characteristically large head and small, tapering body. With large eyes, nostrils, and tooth plates, the head gives them a rabbit-like appearance, hence the nickname “Rabbit fish”. They can grow to 1.5 metres (5 ft) and live for up to 30 years.
The giant sunfish or bumphead sunfish, , is a fish belonging to the family Molidae. It is closely related to the more widely known Mola mola, and is found in the Southern Hemisphere. With a specimen found dead near the Azores in 2021 weighing in at 2744 kg it is the largest extant bony fish species in terms of maximum recorded mass by a wide margin. It can be found basking on its side occasionally near the surface, which is thought to be used to re-heat themselves after diving in cold water for prey, recharge their oxygen stores, and attract gulls to free them of parasites.
The graytail skate, or gray tail skate, is a large species of skate in the family Arhynchobatidae, native to the south-western Atlantic Ocean and south-eastern Pacific Ocean. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN. It was caught as part of a commercial fishery around the Falkland Islands and is a bycatch in several other fisheries.
The redbanded rockfish, also known as the bandit, barber pole, flag rockfish, Spanish flag, Hollywood, convict, and canary, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily Sebastinae, the rockfishes, part of the family Scorpaenidae. It is found in the northern Pacific Ocean.
The whitefin chimaera is a species of fish in the family Chimaeridae. It is found in the Indian Ocean to the NW of Australia, with a restricted distribution. Chimaera argiloba inhabits marine waters from a depth range of 370–520 m. It is abundant within its range.
The Southern eagle ray, sometimes known as the Southern eagle fish or the rockfish, is a ray species in the family Myliobatidae. It lives in waters just off of the Atlantic coast, from the tip of Florida down to Argentina, inhabiting estuaries or bays to give birth during spring and summer and migrating to the open sea in autumn and winter. It has an average width of 99 centimeters, and a length of 60 centimeters. It is often confused with the bullnose ray, a related species in the genus Myliobatis, due to the two species' similarities in appearance.
Brotula barbata, commonly known as the bearded brotula, Atlantic bearded brotula, or sugarfish, is a species of cusk-eel in the genus Brotula. It lives in the Atlantic Ocean, in depths of up to 300 meters. Its coloring ranges from olive-brown to red-brown, and it grows up to be around 50 centimeters. It has a carnivorous diet, and it is oviparous.
The longspine chimaera is a chimaera species in the family Chimaeridae. It is found off of the eastern and western coasts of Australia, and lives in tropical and temperate waters 435–1,300 meters deep. Males and females grow to a maximum total length of 93.9 and 103.4 centimeters, respectively, and are brown in color.
The shortspine chimaera, also commonly known as the short spine chimaera, is a chimaera species in the family Chimaeridae, which lives off of the east coast of Australia.
The black ghostshark, also known as the black chimaera, is a chimaera species within the family Chimaeridae. The species lives off the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, in depths of 500–1,450 m (1,640–4,760 ft). It has a black or dark brown body; males have a total length of 108 cm (43 in). The species is closely related to the abyssal ghostshark. Although it is sometimes caught as a bycatch, it does not have any major threats and is listed as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The whitespot ghost shark is a chimaera species in the family Chimaeridae, which lives in parts of the Galápagos Islands in the southeast Pacific Ocean. It lives in waters with steep slopes and boulders and grows to a total length of around 40–50 cm (16–20 in).
Chirodactylus jessicalenorum, the natal fingerfin, is a species of ray-finned fish within the family Cheilodactylidae. It is found in the Indian Ocean off the coast of South Africa, at depths of 3 to 20 meters below sea level.