Vinciguerria attenuata
No common name
NS
G5
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Stomiiformes
Phosichthyidae (Lightfishes)
Vinciguerria
Vinciguerria attenuata
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
Moderately elongate and moderately slender, with a large mouth, slightly tubular eyes, and two rows of photophores. Premaxillary teeth are uniserial, with several moderately long teeth separated by short teeth. Teeth on posterior section of maxilla are evenly spaced and moderately long, and they slightly increase in size posteriorly. Vomer has one small tooth on each side, and palatine has three or four teeth. Gill filaments are relatively long and are not fused at base. Gill rakers on first arch number 5 on epibranch and 14 or 15 on lower limb. Branchiostegal rays number 12, with 4 on epihyal. Dorsal adipose fin has short base. Anus is closer to anal fin origin than to pelvic fin insertion. Dorsal fin origin is anterior to anal fin origin, and dorsal fin base is about equal to anal fin base. Dorsal fin rays number 13 to 15, and anal fin rays number 13 to 16. Photophores are absent on symphysis of lower jaw. So is located anterior to eye, and Po is located posteroventral to eye. OP number 3, and BR number 8. IV number 22 to 24, and VAV number 7 to 10. OA number 21 to 23, and AC number 12 to 14.
Dark dorsally and silvery on flank. Lower jaw symphysis, premaxilla, and fin rays lack pigment streaks.
Distribution
Eastern seaboard of the United States from about 40°N to the equator
Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
Habitat Associations
Tropical to warm temperate seas, between 250 and 300 m for juveniles and adults, 250 to 300 m for pre-metamorphic postlarvae, and 300 to 700 m for metamorphic postlarvae
Biology
Copepods
46 mm SL
Peak spawning occurs in early spring to summer
Mesopelagic species, found at 250-600 m during the day and 100-500 m at night (Ref. 4778, 58302). Both juveniles and adults make short diel vertical migrations (Ref. 4778). Feeds on small crustaceans (Ref. 4778). Adult photophore complement attained at about 20 mm SL (Ref. 4778). Spawns in spring and early summer (Ref. 37473).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2014-07-15. Resilience: Medium (tmax=1).
References
Grey 1964
Bekker et al. 1975
Badcock 1984c
Schaefer et al. 1986a
Schaefer, S., R.K. Johnson and J. Badcock (1986) Photichthyidae. p. 243-247. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Quéro, J.-C., J.C. Njock and M.M. de la Hoz (1990) Photichthyidae. p. 343-348. 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.
Badcock, J. (1984) Photichthyidae. p. 318-324. 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. volume 1. UNESCO, Paris.
Yang, J., Z. Huang, S. Chen and Q. Li (1996) The Deep-Water Pelagic Fishes in the Area form Nansha Islands To the Northeast part of South China Sea. Science Publication Company, Beijing. 190 pp.
Patzner, R.A. (2008) Reproductive strategies of fish. pp. 311-350. In Rocha, M.J., A. Arukwe and B.G. Kapoor (eds). Fish reproduction: cytology, biology and ecology. Science Publisher, Inc. Oxford. 631 p.
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