Neoscopelus microchir
No common name
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GNR
Collection Details
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Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Myctophiformes (Lanternfishes)
Neoscopelidae
Neoscopelus
Neoscopelus microchir
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
Rather fusiform and compressed, with a conical head and large eyes. Dorsal profile of head is straight. Mouth is oblique. Upper jaw extends to slightly behind posterior margin of orbit. Lower jaw projects slightly beyond upper jaw. Upper and lower jaws have inner series of enlarged, conical, and depressible teeth, and outer band of close-set, villiform teeth. Vomer, palatine, and ectopterygoids have bands of small teeth. Eye is 23% to 25% of head length. Gill rakers on first arch number 3 on epibranch, 1 in corner, and 10 or 11 on lower limb. Those on lower limb are dentigerous plates. Dorsal fin originates over, to slightly anterior to, pelvic fin base and has 12 or 13 rays. Pectoral fin extends to near anus and has 16 or 17 rays. Anal fin has 10 to 12 rays, and base is shorter than dorsal fin base. Adipose fin base is over posterior one-half of anal fin base. Photophores are arranged in midventral series and in several bilateral series on trunk, and in single series along periphery of tongue. Those of lateral series posterior to pectoral fin base (LO) extend to end of anal fin base and number 20 to 22. Large cycloid scales cover body. Swim bladder is present. Vertebrae number 30 or 31.
Color is light brown, with operculum, back, and ventral photophore regions dark brown, or head and ventral half of body silvery iridescent. Color in life is dark red, with belly silvery white.
Distribution
In the western Atlantic it occurs in the Straits of Florida and the northern Gulf of Mexico, and off Jamaica and Honduras.
northern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Tropical to sub-tropical waters, near the bottom at depths of 250 to 700 m
Biology
Maximum known size is 305 mm SL
Size at maturity is about 120 mm SL
Found over continental and island slopes (Ref. 4481).
Sexual mature at 12 cm (Ref. 47377).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2018-06-29. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Phylogeny and Morphologically Similar Fishes
Distinguished from other species of the family by the combination of characters described
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: of no interest.
References
Nafpaktitis 1977
Hulley 1984a
Hulley 1986c
Burgess and Branstetter 1985
Hulley, P.A. (1990) Neoscopelidae. p. 468-469. 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.
Hulley, P.A. (1986) Neoscopelidae. p. 321-322. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Pauly, D. and V. Christensen (1995) Primary production required to sustain global fisheries. Nature 374(6519):255-257.
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