Anoplopoma fimbria
Sablefish
NS
G5
Collection Details
Specimens
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Scorpaeniformes (Lionfish, Stonefish and others)
Anoplopomatidae (Sablefishes)
Anoplopoma
Anoplopoma fimbria (Sablefish)
Description
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Characters
Body shape: fusiform / normal. Dorsal fins well separated; 2nd dorsal fin sub equal to anal fin in size and form, and opposite in position. Reaches over 1 m in SL. Striking features: none.
Distribution
North Pacific: Bering Sea coasts of Kamchatka, Russia and Alaska southward to Hatsu Shima Island, southern Japan and Cedros Island, central Baja California, Mexico in the eastern Pacific.
Habitat Associations
Marine. bathydemersal. depth range 175-2740 m.
Biology
Adults found on mud bottoms, from 305 (Ref. 2850) to 2,740 m depth (Ref. 2850). Young-of-the-year juveniles are pelagic and found on the surface and near-shore waters (Ref. 28499). Generally localized, but some juveniles have been found to migrate over 2,000 miles in 6 or 7 years (Ref. 28499). Feed on crustaceans, worms and small fishes (Ref. 4925). Most of the catch is marketed in Japan (Ref. 28499). Utilized fresh, dried or salted and smoked (Ref. 9988), can be steamed, pan-fried, broiled, boiled, microwaved and baked (Ref. 9988). The liver oil is rich in vitamin A and D (Ref. 4925). Reported to reach 57 kg in Ref. 2850.
Max length: 120.0 cm TL; common length: 80.0 cm TL; max age: 94 years.
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none.
IUCN Red List Status: N.E. (N.E.). Resilience: Very low (K=0.2; tm=6; Fec=100,000; tmax=94).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: highly commercial; gamefish; aquaculture: likely future use; aquarium: public aquariums.
References
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Masuda, H., K. Amaoka, C. Araga, T. Uyeno and T. Yoshino (1984) The fishes of the Japanese Archipelago. Vol. 1. Tokai University Press, Tokyo, Japan. 437 p. (text).
Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H. Hammann (1983) A field guide to Pacific coast fishes of North America. Boston (MA, USA): Houghton Mifflin Company. xii+336 p.
Allen, M.J. and G.B. Smith (1988) Atlas and zoogeography of common fishes in the Bering Sea and northeastern Pacific. NOAA Tech. Rep. NMFS 66, 151 p.
Frimodt, C. (1995) Multilingual illustrated guide to the world's commercial coldwater fish. Fishing News Books, Osney Mead, Oxford, England. 215 p.
Lamb, A. and P. Edgell (1986) Coastal fishes of the Pacific northwest. Madeira Park, (BC, Canada): Harbour Publishing Co. Ltd., 224 p.
Yang, M.S. and M.W. Nelson (1999) Food habits of the commercially important groundfishes in the Gulf of Alaska in 1990, 1993, and 1996. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-AFSC 112, 174 p.
Mecklenburg, C.W. (2003) Family Anoplopomatidae Jordan & Gilbert 1883 - sablefishes. Calif. Acad. Sci. Annotated Checklists of Fishes (2):3.
Comments On Anoplopoma fimbria