Conocara macropterum
No common name
Collection Details
Specimens
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Alepocephalidae (Slickheads)
Conocara
Conocara macropterum
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
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Characters
Elongate, slender, and posteriorly compressed body; moderately long, acute snout; fleshy fold along back and above and below caudal peduncle; body covered with scales. Snout length longer than eye length, about 9-10% SL. Head length 30-33% SL. Premaxilla does not form visorlike plate. Maxilla extends to or just distal to anterior margin of eye. One supramaxilla on dorsal margin of maxilla. Teeth in premaxilla, palatine, and dentary but not in maxilla or vomer. Epibranch of first gill arch has one gill raker. Pectoral fin not fanlike, upper rays longer than lower rays, 8-10 rays. Dorsal fin origin posterior to anal fin origin, dorsal fin base shorter than anal fin base. Dorsal fin has 18-21 rays, anal fin has 37-39 rays. Pelvic fin has 6 or 7 rays. Body (except head) covered with small, barely imbricated scales.
Pale brown to black
Distribution
Bahamas, eastern Gulf of Mexico
eastern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Benthopelagic between 800 and 2,200 m, most common between 1,200 and 1,800 m
Biology
Maximum known size is 340 mm SL
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-07-11. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Phylogeny and Morphologically Similar Fishes
Distinguished from other species of the family by the combination of characters described
References
Markle and Quero 1984
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Markle, D.F. and Y.I. Sazanov (1990) Alepocephalidae. p. 246-264. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI, Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 1.
Markle, D.F. and J.-C. Quéro (1984) Alepocephalidae (including Bathylaconidae, Bathyprionidae). p. 228-253. In P.J.P. Whitehead, M.-L. Bauchot, J.-C. Hureau, J. Nielsen and E. Tortonese (eds.) Fishes of the North-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 1.
Crabtree, R.E. and K.J. Sulak (1986) A contribution to the life history and distribution of Atlantic species of the deep-sea fishes genus Conocara (Alepocephalidae). Deep-Sea Res. 33(9):1183-1201.
Comments On Conocara macropterum