Chimaeridae
Encyclopedia
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of cartilaginous fish.
They resemble other chimaeras in general form and habits, but have a short, rounded, snout, without the modifications found in related families. Many species have a long tapering tail, given them an alternative name of ratfish. Shortnose chimaeras have a venomous spine on their backs, which is sufficiently dangerous to injure humans.
They are found in temperate and tropical marine waters worldwide. Most species are restricted to depths below 200 metres (656.2 ft), but a few, notably the spotted ratfish
Spotted ratfish
The spotted ratfish, Hydrolagus colliei, is a chimaera found in the north-eastern Pacific Ocean. Often seen by divers at night in the Pacific Northwest, this harmless shark relative gets its characteristic name from a pointed rat-like tail. The ratfish lays leathery egg cases on the bottom of muddy...
, can locally be found at relatively shallow depths. They range from 38 centimetres (15 in) to 150 centimetres (4.9 ft) in maximum total length, depending on species.
Species
There are 36 species, grouped into two genera:Family Chimaeridae
- Genus ChimaeraChimaera (genus)Chimaera is the type genus of the cartilaginous fish family Chimaeridae.It contains the following thirteen species with more likely to be discovered:** Chimaera argiloba Last, W. T...
Linnaeus, 1758- Chimaera argiloba Last, W. T. White & Pogonoski, 2008 (Whitefin chimaera)
- Chimaera bahamaensis Kemper, Ebert, Didier & Compagno, 2010 (Bahamas ghost shark)
- Chimaera cubana Howell-RiveroLuis Howell-RiveroLuis Howell-Rivero was a Cuban biologist and anthropologist. In the 1920's and 30's he identified numerous new species of animals, especially fish, in Cuba and the rest of the Caribbean. One example is Squalus cubensis, the Cuban dogfish...
, 1936 - Chimaera fulva Didier, Last & W. T. White, 2008 (Southern Chimaera)
- Chimaera jordani S. Tanaka (I)Shigeho Tanakawas a Japanese ichthyologist and professor of zoology at the Imperial University of Tokyo. He published numerous works on fishes and sharks and co-authored a book on Japanese fish with famous American scientist David Starr Jordan.Publications:...
, 1905 (Jordan's Chimaera) - Chimaera lignaria Didier, 2002 (Carpenter's chimaera)
- Chimaera macrospina Didier, Last & W. T. White, 2008 (Longspine Chimaera)
- Chimaera monstrosaChimaera monstrosaChimaera monstrosa, also known as the rabbit fish or rat fish, is a species of fish in the Chimaeridae family.-Anatomy and appearance:...
LinnaeusCarolus LinnaeusCarl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
, 1758 (Rabbit fish) - Chimaera notafricana Kemper, Ebert, Compagno & Didier, 2010 Cape Chimaera
- Chimaera obscura Didier, Last & W. T. White, 2008 (Shortspine Chimaera)
- Chimaera owstoni S. Tanaka (I)Shigeho Tanakawas a Japanese ichthyologist and professor of zoology at the Imperial University of Tokyo. He published numerous works on fishes and sharks and co-authored a book on Japanese fish with famous American scientist David Starr Jordan.Publications:...
, 1905 (Owston's Chimaera) - Chimaera panthera Didier, 1998 (Leopard Chimaera)
- Chimaera phantasma D. S. JordanDavid Starr JordanDavid Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenicist, ichthyologist, educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University.-Early life and education:...
& SnyderJohn Otterbein SnyderJohn Otterbein Snyder was an American zoologist.As a student he met David Starr Jordan who inspired him to enter zoology. He eventually became a zoology instructor at Stanford University and served there from 1899 until 1943. He went on several major collecting expeditions aboard the USS Albatross...
, 1900 (Silver chimaera)
- Genus HydrolagusHydrolagusHydrolagus is a genus of fish in the Chimaeridae family.It contains the following species:* Hydrolagus affinis * Hydrolagus africanus...
GillTheodore GillTheodore Nicholas Gill was an American ichthyologist, mammalogist, malacologist and librarian.Born and educated in New York City under private tutors, Gill early showed interest in natural history. He was associated with J...
, 1863- Hydrolagus affinis (Brito Capello, 1868) (Smalleyed rabbitfish)
- Hydrolagus africanus (Gilchrist, 1922) (African chimaera)
- Hydrolagus alberti BigelowHenry Bryant BigelowHenry Bryant Bigelow was an American oceanographer and marine biologist.After graduating from Harvard in 1901, he began working with famed ichthyologist Alexander Agassiz. Bigelow accompanied Agassiz on several major marine science expeditions including one aboard the Albatross in 1907...
& SchroederWilliam Charles SchroederWilliam Charles Schroeder was an American ichthyologist. He was born on Staten Island, New York. He, along with his lifelong colleague Henry Bryant Bigelow, made substantial contributions to the knowledge of the fish fauna of the western North Atlantic...
, 1951 - Hydrolagus alphus Quaranta, Didier, Long & Ebert, 2006
- Hydrolagus barbouri (Garman, 1908)
- Hydrolagus bemisi Didier, 2002 (Pale ghost shark)
- Hydrolagus colliei (LayGeorge Tradescant LayGeorge Tradescant Lay was a British naturalist, missionary and diplomat.Lay was a naturalist on the English sailing ship HMS Blossom under the command of Captain Frederick William Beechey from 1825 to 1828, where he collected specimens in the Pacific including California, Alaska, Kamchatka, China,...
& E. T. BennettEdward Turner BennettEdward Turner Bennett was an English zoologist and writer. He was the elder brother of the botanist John Joseph Bennett. Bennett was born at Hackney and practiced as a surgeon, but his chief pursuit was always zoology...
, 1839) (Spotted ratfish) - Hydrolagus deani (H. M. SmithHugh McCormick SmithHugh McCormick Smith was an American ichthyologist and administrator in the Bureau of Fisheries.-Biography:...
& RadcliffeLewis RadcliffeLewis Radcliffe was a naturalist, malacologist, and ichthyologist. He was Deputy Commissioner of the United States Bureau of Fisheries until 1932 and was the assistant naturalist under Hugh McCormick Smith for the 1907-1910 Philippines Expedition. During his life, he described numerous new species...
, 1912) (Philippine chimaera) - Hydrolagus eidolon (D. S. JordanDavid Starr JordanDavid Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenicist, ichthyologist, educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University.-Early life and education:...
& HubbsCarl Leavitt Hubbs-Youth:He was born in Williams, Arizona. He was the son of Charles Leavitt and Elizabeth Hubbs. His father had a wide variety of jobs . The family moved several times before settling in San Diego where he got his first taste of natural history...
, 1925) - Hydrolagus homonycteris Didier, 2008 (Black Ghostshark)
- Hydrolagus lemures (WhitleyGilbert Percy WhitleyGilbert Percy Whitley was a British-born Australian ichthyologist and malacologist who was Curator of Fishes at the Australian Museum in Sydney for about 40 years. He was born at Swaythling, Southampton, England, and was educated at King Edward VI School, Southampton and Osborne House...
, 1939) (Blackfin ghostshark) - Hydrolagus lusitanicus Moura, Figueiredo, Bordalo-Machado, Almeida & Gordo, 2005
- Hydrolagus macrophthalmus de BuenDon Fernando de Buen y LozanoDon Fernando de Buen y Lozano was a Spanish ichthyologist and oceanographer. He lived in Mexico, Uruguay, and Chile. In Uruguay, he was the director of the Department of Science at the Oceanography and Fisheries Service as well as Professor of Hydrobiology and Protozoology in the Faculty of Arts...
, 1959 - Hydrolagus marmoratus Didier, 2008 Marbled Ghostshark
- Hydrolagus matallanasiHydrolagus matallanasiHydrolagus matallanasi is a species of very rare deep-water chimaera that lives in the ocean at depths of up to 600 m. The species is 150 million years old. It was discovered in 2001 by a team of Brazilian scientists....
Soto & Vooren, 2004 (Striped rabbitfish) - Hydrolagus mccoskeri Barnett, Didier, Long & Ebert, 2006 (Galápagos Ghostshark)
- Hydrolagus melanophasma K. C. James, Ebert, Long & Didier, 2009 (Eastern Pacific Black Ghostshark)
- Hydrolagus mirabilis (CollettRobert CollettRobert Collett was a Norwegian zoologist. He worked with vertebrates, primarily fishes. From 1864 he was curator at the Zoological Museum in Oslo. In 1882 he became its director and from 1884 was a professor there...
, 1904) (Large-eyed rabbitfish) - Hydrolagus mitsukuriiHydrolagus mitsukuriiHydrolagus mitsukurii is a species of fish in the Chimaeridae family. It is found in China, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Indonesia. Its natural habitat is open seas. It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:...
(D. S. JordanDavid Starr JordanDavid Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenicist, ichthyologist, educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University.-Early life and education:...
& SnyderJohn Otterbein SnyderJohn Otterbein Snyder was an American zoologist.As a student he met David Starr Jordan who inspired him to enter zoology. He eventually became a zoology instructor at Stanford University and served there from 1899 until 1943. He went on several major collecting expeditions aboard the USS Albatross...
, 1904) (Spookfish) - Hydrolagus novaezealandiae (FowlerHenry Weed FowlerHenry Weed Fowler was an American zoologist born in Holmesburg, Pennsylvania.He studied at Stanford University under David Starr Jordan...
, 1911) (Dark ghostshark) - Hydrolagus ogilbyi (WaiteEdgar Ravenswood WaiteEdgar Ravenswood Waite was a British/Australian ichthyologist, ornithologist and zoologist.Waite was born in Leeds, Yorkshire, England, the second son of John Waite, a bank clerk,...
, 1898) - Hydrolagus pallidus Hardy & Stehmann, 1990
- Hydrolagus purpurescens (GilbertCharles Henry GilbertCharles Henry Gilbert was a pioneer ichthyologist and fishery biologist of particular significance to natural history of the western United States. He collected and studied fishes from Central America north to Alaska and described many new species...
, 1905) (Purple chimaera) - Hydrolagus trolli Didier & Séret, 2002 (Pointy-nosed blue chimaera)
- Hydrolagus waitei FowlerHenry Weed FowlerHenry Weed Fowler was an American zoologist born in Holmesburg, Pennsylvania.He studied at Stanford University under David Starr Jordan...
, 1907 - Hydrolagus sp. D/G Giant Black Chimaera
- Hydrolagus sp. F Peruvian Ratfish