Typhlonus nasus
| Typhlonus nasus | ||||||||||||
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Typhlonus nasus |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Typhlonus | ||||||||||||
| Günther , 1878 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Typhlonus nasus | ||||||||||||
| Günther , 1878 |
Typhlonus nasus is a deep-sea fish from the male bearded family(Ophidiidae). Since it has no externally visible eyes as an adult fish, it was given the common English name “Faceless Cusk” and was also referred to in the German-language press as a “faceless fish”. The species was firstcaughton August 25, 1874 on the Challenger Expedition .
features
Individuals up to 28.5 centimeters in length are known of the species, a quarter of this length being due to the large, externally eyeless, bulbous head. In small individuals, rudimentary eyes can be seen under the skin. The snout with two pairs of large nostrils protrudes over the relatively small, protruding mouth. At the gill cover sits a weak, flexible and forked thorn, which is covered by skin in larger specimens. The body has no lateral line organ , is covered by large, easily peeling scales and tapers to a short, slender tail. The short pectoral fins have 24 to 28 rays, the ventral fins , which are located far in front below the gill cover, consist of only one single, powerful ray. The dorsal fin begins above the pectoral fins and is very long with 93 to 104 rays just like the 71 to 78-rayed anal fin , while the caudal fin is small and slender with only 8 rays. The teeth are small and sit close together, the gill trap has two to four or five to six short robust spines on the first arch above and below, and ten to thirteen longer, slender ones in between. Its diet consists mainly of various crustaceans .
Occurrence
Typhlonus nasus lives on the abyssal level at depths of 4,000 to 5,000 meters in the Indo-Pacific and is known from catches off New South Wales (Australia), Papua New Guinea, Japan, Hawaii, Indonesia and the Arabian Sea.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Researchers bring fish without a face out of the sea ( Spiegel Online )
- ↑ Typhlonus nasus in Fishes of Australia
Web links
- Typhlonus nasus on Fishbase.org (English)
- The faceless fish looks happier and heartier than it did in 1887 at Marine Biodiversity Hub