Promethichthys prometheus
No common name
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
There are no photos available for this taxon yet.
Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Gempylidae (Snake Mackerels)
Promethichthys
Promethichthys prometheus
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.
It may contain errors in spelling, punctuation, or formatting.
When citing, please reference the original source rather than this page.
Learn more about our species accounts.
Characters
Elongate, moderately slender, and compressed body; rudimentary pelvic fins and finlets behind dorsal and anal fins; head slightly elevated from tip of snout to dorsal fin origin; anterior naris closer to tip of snout than to anterior margin of eye; lower jaw projects beyond upper jaw; maxilla exposed when mouth is closed; upper jaw with 3-4 immobile and 0-3 depressible fangs, followed by 12-13 small canine teeth; lower jaw with 1 short fang and 7-8 caninelike teeth; vomer lacks teeth; palatine with single row of small teeth; operculum with 1 flat spine; gill rakers spinelike with 1-3 cusps; measurements (% SL): head length 27%-29%, snout length 11%, eye diameter 6%, upper jaw length 13%, body depth 8%-14%; pectoral fin with 13-15 rays; first dorsal fin with 17-19 spines; second dorsal fin with 1 spine and 17-19 rays; anal fin with 2-3 spines and 15-17 rays; vertebrae 33-35 (18-20 precaudal, 14-16 caudal); body entirely scaled in individuals >20-25 cm SL
Grayish to coppery brown; fins blackish in large specimens (>40 cm SL) and yellowish with blackish tips in small specimens
Distribution
New England and Bermuda to central Brazil, including the northern and southern Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
Northern and southern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Benthopelagic over continental and insular shelves and slopes between 100 and 750 m; migrates into midwater at night
Biology
Feeds on cephalopods, crustaceans, and ray-finned fishes at night
Maximum known size is 100 cm SL
Found at continental slopes, around oceanic islands and submarine rises (Ref. 6181). Meso-benthopelagic (Ref. 58302). Migrate to midwater at night (Ref. 6181). Feed on fish, cephalopods and crustaceans (Ref. 6181). Eggs and larvae are pelagic (Ref. 6766).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none. Probably spawns throughout the year in warmer seas.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-08-22. Resilience: Low (K=0.17-0.18; tm=4; tmax=11;).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: subsistence fisheries; gamefish.
References
Grey 1960
Fujii 1983e
Nakamura and Parin 1993
Nakamura and Parin 2001b
Smith-Vaniz et al. 1999
Parin et al. 2002a
Schneider, W. (1990) FAO species identification sheets for fishery purposes. Field guide to the commercial marine resources of the Gulf of Guinea. Prepared and published with the support of the FAO Regional Office for Africa. Rome: FAO. 268 p.
Nakamura, I. and N.V. Parin (1993) FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 15. Snake mackerels and cutlassfishes of the world (families Gempylidae and Trichiuridae). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of the snake mackerels, snoeks, escolars, gemfishes, sackfishes, domine, oilfish, cutlassfishes,. scabbardfishes, hairtails, and frostfishes known to date. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(15):136 p.
Heemstra, P.C., K. Hissmann, H. Fricke and M.J. Smale (2006) Fishes of the deep demersal habitat at Ngazidja (Grand Comoro) Island, Western Indian Ocean. South African J. Sci. 102(9/10):444-460.
Comments On Promethichthys prometheus