Eustomias schmidti
Encyclopedia
Eustomias schmidti, more commonly known as the scaleless dragonfish, is one of the many species included in the family
of Stomiidae
. Despite its small size, the scaleless dragonfish is a dangerous predator in the deep oceanic waters that uses its self-generated light to attract its prey.
Each Eustomias schmidti has 22–28 dorsal fins and 36–43 anal soft rays. This type of fish has no dorsal or anal spines. One of the defining characteristics of the genus Eustomias is the barbel. On the barbel of the Eustomias schmidti, it has three branches arising from the stem. The middle branch is stout and swollen with distal filaments that barely reach the barbel tip. The side branches taper and extend far beyond the end of the barbel, with an exception in smaller specimens. The terminal bulb is strongly constricted. One or more complex filaments rise from the region of constriction of the bulb.
Along the body, there are two prominent ventrolateral rows of photophores. In addition, there are many small photophores covering most of the body and head. The scaleless dragonfish has two pectoral
finrays (bounded closely in a black membrane
) and seven pelvic finrays.
At its first maturity level, the females reach 11–11.4 cm (4.3–4.5 ) whereas the males are slightly smaller and reach 10.3 centimetre. Overall, a scaleless dragonfish can reach to be 21.2 cm (8.3 in) during its lifetime.
. Therefore, they are most commonly found in deep oceanic waters. During the day, they live in waters deeper than 500 metres (1,640.4 ft). During the night, some fish choose to migrate to near-surface waters.
and Pacific
oceans between 35–40° N and 30–35° S but are found mostly in boundary currents or equatorial
water. Other areas include the Gulf of Mexico
, Caribbean Sea
, and the Indian Ocean
.
Countries where Eustomias schmidti is found:
Ecosystems where Eustomias schmidti occurs:
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 Stomiidae
Stomiidae
Stomiidae is a family of deep-sea ray-finned fish, including the barbeled dragonfishes, stareaters and loosejaws.Stomiids are generally elongated fish with black or near-black bodies, but they are highly variable in form, and are sometimes grouped into multiple different families as a result. The...
. Despite its small size, the scaleless dragonfish is a dangerous predator in the deep oceanic waters that uses its self-generated light to attract its prey.
Body
Eustomias schmidti has an elongated and slender body. The head is quite small with large jaws that are about the same length as the head. The jawbone has small, erect teeth standing in an anterior direction.Each Eustomias schmidti has 22–28 dorsal fins and 36–43 anal soft rays. This type of fish has no dorsal or anal spines. One of the defining characteristics of the genus Eustomias is the barbel. On the barbel of the Eustomias schmidti, it has three branches arising from the stem. The middle branch is stout and swollen with distal filaments that barely reach the barbel tip. The side branches taper and extend far beyond the end of the barbel, with an exception in smaller specimens. The terminal bulb is strongly constricted. One or more complex filaments rise from the region of constriction of the bulb.
Along the body, there are two prominent ventrolateral rows of photophores. In addition, there are many small photophores covering most of the body and head. The scaleless dragonfish has two pectoral
Pectoral
Pectoral may refer to:* Pectoral cross, a cross worn on the chest* a decorative, usually jeweled version of a gorget* Pectoral , often iconographic with hieroglyphs* Pectoralis major muscle, commonly referred to as "pectorals" or "pecs"...
finrays (bounded closely in a black membrane
Membrane
-In biology:* Biological membrane* Cell membrane, a biological type of Membrane ** Inner membrane** Outer membrane * The two fetal membranes** amnion** chorion* Basement membrane* Mucous membrane* Serous membrane...
) and seven pelvic finrays.
At its first maturity level, the females reach 11–11.4 cm (4.3–4.5 ) whereas the males are slightly smaller and reach 10.3 centimetre. Overall, a scaleless dragonfish can reach to be 21.2 cm (8.3 in) during its lifetime.
Skin and color
It has no scales or hexagonal areas on its body. The scaleless fish's skin is usually black, sometimes iridescent silver, bronze, or green.Habitat
The Eustomias schmidti are mostly mesopelagicMesopelagic
The mesopelagic is that part of the pelagic zone that extends from a depth of 200 to 1000 metres below the ocean surface. It lies between the photic epipelagic above and the aphotic bathypelagic below, where there is no light at all...
. Therefore, they are most commonly found in deep oceanic waters. During the day, they live in waters deeper than 500 metres (1,640.4 ft). During the night, some fish choose to migrate to near-surface waters.
Distribution
The scaleless dragonfish occur in the AtlanticAtlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
and Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
oceans between 35–40° N and 30–35° S but are found mostly in boundary currents or equatorial
Equatorial
Equatorial may refer to:* Equator of the Earth* Equatorial climate in meteorology* The ring-shaped outer boundary of the cross-section of a round three dimensional shape or object in geometry* The equatorial bond of a molecule in chemistry...
water. Other areas include the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
, Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
, and the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
.
Countries where Eustomias schmidti is found:
- AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
- Canary IslandsCanary IslandsThe Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
- HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
- JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
- Madeira Islands
- MoroccoMoroccoMorocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
- NamibiaNamibiaNamibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
- New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
- Papua New GuineaPapua New GuineaPapua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
- South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
- West Sahara
Ecosystems where Eustomias schmidti occurs:
- Bear SeamountBear SeamountThe Bear Seamount is a guyot in the Atlantic Ocean. It is the oldest of the New England Seamount chain, which was active more than 100 million years ago. It was formed when the North American Plate moved over the New England hotspot.- External links :*...
- Atlantic OceanAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
- Benguela CurrentBenguela CurrentThe Benguela Current is the broad, northward flowing ocean current that forms the eastern portion of the South Atlantic Ocean gyre. The current extends from roughly Cape Point in the south, to the position of the Angola-Benguela Front in the north, at around 16°S. The current is driven by the...
- Canary CurrentCanary CurrentThe Canary Current is a wind-driven surface current that is part of the North Atlantic Gyre. This eastern boundary current branches south from the North Atlantic Current and flows southwest about as far as Senegal where it turns west and later joins the Atlantic North Equatorial Current. The...
- Caribbean SeaCaribbean SeaThe Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
- East Central Australian Shelf
- Gulf of MexicoGulf of MexicoThe Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
- Indian OceanIndian OceanThe Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
- Kuroshio CurrentKuroshio CurrentThe Kuroshio is a north-flowing ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean. It is similar to the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic and is part of the North Pacific ocean gyre...
- New Zealand Shelf
- Pacific OceanPacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
- Southeast U.S. Continental Shelf
- Tasman SeaTasman SeaThe Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately across. It extends 2,800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first recorded European...