Telescopic tables
| Telescopic tables | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the family | ||||||||||||
| Giganturidae | ||||||||||||
| Brewer , 1906 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Gigantura | ||||||||||||
| Brewer , 1901 |
The telescopic fish ( gigantura ), also called giant tails, are small deep sea fish. They got their name because of their strange, tubular eyes. The genus contains only two species and is the only one in the Giganturidae family . Telescopic fish live in the Atlantic , Pacific and Indian Oceans .
features
Telescopic fish are slender, large-headed fish dominated by large, forward-facing eyes. The head ends in a short, pointed snout. The mouth extends far behind the eyes and is covered with long, sharp, backward-curved teeth. The teeth can be folded back. The mouth and body cavity are dark inside, which probably serves to darken the light organs of eaten prey fish. The scaly body is silvery with a green or purple tinge. The pectoral fins set high on the body above the gill openings.
The transparent fins have no hard fin rays, the lower part of the deeply forked caudal fin is often as long as the entire body. Telescopic niches are only 15 to 20 centimeters long. At a length of 25 to 34 mm, the extraordinarily striking metamorphosis from larva to adult animal begins . The animals retain numerous larval properties ( neoteny ) even in adulthood . The fish have no swim bladder , adipose fin , pelvic fins and pelvis are missing, as well as premaxillary , orbitosphenoid, parietals , gill pots , posterior bones (post-temporal), supratemporal and cleithrum (bones in the shoulder girdle).
nutrition
Telescopic fish are actively hunting carnivores and live at a depth of 500 to 3,000 meters. With the help of their large, tubular eyes, they can probably perceive the shadow images of their victims against the residual light coming from above.
From studies of the stomach contents one knows that lantern fish and bristle mouths belong to their prey. Because of their very elastic stomachs, the animals are able to devour very large prey.
Reproduction
It is believed that they spawn in open water and drive eggs and larvae pelagically . The fry probably live in shallower water and only migrate to the deep-sea habitat as adults.
species
There are only two types:
- Gigantura indica brewer, 1901; 20 centimeters long.
- Gigantura chuni brewer, 1901; 15 centimeters long.
literature
- Kurt Fiedler: Textbook of Special Zoology, Volume II, Part 2: Fish , Gustav Fischer Verlag, Jena 1991, ISBN 3-334-00339-6
- Joseph S. Nelson : Fishes of the World , John Wiley & Sons, 2006, ISBN 0-471-25031-7
Web links
- Telescopic fish on Fishbase.org (English)