Hexagrammidae
Encyclopedia
The family
of marine fishes Hexagrammidae incorporates the greenlings. These fish are found on the continental shelf
in the temperate or subarctic waters of the North Pacific
. They are a well-known family in the littoral zone
from southern California
north to the Aleutian Islands. The most commercially important species is the lingcod
(Ophiodon elongatus), a common food fish.
Hexagrammids are small to moderate in size, averaging around 50 cm, although the lingcod can be much larger. Like many other scorpaeniform
species, they have broad, spiny pectoral, dorsal, and anal fins. They are scavengers but also catch and eat small fish and bottom-dwelling animals such as crabs. They can be found off rocky shorelines, in kelp beds
, and, especially during spawning, in shallow inlet
s and tidepool
s.
The kelp greenling (Hexagrammos decagrammus) is a popular sport fish, and although it is not commercially valuable, it is considered a delicious food catch. The lingcod
is long and olive-yellow in color, and has a very large, toothy mouth. The painted greenling
(Oxylebius pictus) is smaller, brighter in color, and easily recognized by its large vertical red bands.
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 marine fishes Hexagrammidae incorporates the greenlings. These fish are found on the continental shelf
Continental shelf
The continental shelf is the extended perimeter of each continent and associated coastal plain. Much of the shelf was exposed during glacial periods, but is now submerged under relatively shallow seas and gulfs, and was similarly submerged during other interglacial periods. The continental margin,...
in the temperate or subarctic waters of the North 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...
. They are a well-known family in the littoral zone
Littoral
The littoral zone is that part of a sea, lake or river that is close to the shore. In coastal environments the littoral zone extends from the high water mark, which is rarely inundated, to shoreline areas that are permanently submerged. It always includes this intertidal zone and is often used to...
from southern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
north to the Aleutian Islands. The most commercially important species is the lingcod
Lingcod
The lingcod, Ophiodon elongatus, is a fish of the greenling family Hexagrammidae. It is the only extant member of the genus Ophiodon...
(Ophiodon elongatus), a common food fish.
Hexagrammids are small to moderate in size, averaging around 50 cm, although the lingcod can be much larger. Like many other scorpaeniform
Scorpaeniformes
Scorpaeniformes is an order of ray-finned fish, but it has also been called the Scleroparei.They are known as "mail-cheeked" fishes due to their distinguishing characteristic, the suborbital stay: a backwards extension of the third circumorbital bone across the cheek to the preoperculum, to which...
species, they have broad, spiny pectoral, dorsal, and anal fins. They are scavengers but also catch and eat small fish and bottom-dwelling animals such as crabs. They can be found off rocky shorelines, in kelp beds
Kelp forest
Kelp forests are underwater areas with a high density of kelp. They are recognized as one of the most productive and dynamic ecosystems on Earth. Smaller areas of anchored kelp are called kelp beds....
, and, especially during spawning, in shallow inlet
Inlet
An inlet is a narrow body of water between islands or leading inland from a larger body of water, often leading to an enclosed body of water, such as a sound, bay, lagoon or marsh. In sea coasts an inlet usually refers to the actual connection between a bay and the ocean and is often called an...
s and tidepool
Tide pool
Tide pools are rocky pools by oceans that are filled with seawater. Many of these pools exist as separate entities only at low tide.Tide pools are habitats of uniquely adaptable animals that have engaged the special attention of naturalists and marine biologists, as well as philosophical...
s.
The kelp greenling (Hexagrammos decagrammus) is a popular sport fish, and although it is not commercially valuable, it is considered a delicious food catch. The lingcod
Lingcod
The lingcod, Ophiodon elongatus, is a fish of the greenling family Hexagrammidae. It is the only extant member of the genus Ophiodon...
is long and olive-yellow in color, and has a very large, toothy mouth. The painted greenling
Painted greenling
The painted greenling, Oxylebius pictus, is a marine fish native to the eastern Pacific Ocean. Its range is from Kodiak Island, Alaska to central Baja California. It can reach a total size of 25 cm and has seven vertical dark bands. It inhabits rocky areas usually shallower than 50 m. It feeds on...
(Oxylebius pictus) is smaller, brighter in color, and easily recognized by its large vertical red bands.
Species
There are twelve species in five genera:- Genus Hexagrammos
- Hexagrammos agrammus (TemminckCoenraad Jacob TemminckCoenraad Jacob Temminck was a Dutch aristocrat and zoologist.Temminck was the first director of the National Natural History Museum at Leiden from 1820 until his death. His Manuel d'ornithologie, ou Tableau systematique des oiseaux qui se trouvent en Europe was the standard work on European birds...
& SchlegelHermann SchlegelHermann Schlegel was a German ornithologist and herpetologist.-Early life and education:Schlegel was born at Altenburg, the son of a brassfounder. His father collected butterflies, which stimulated Schlegel's interest in natural history...
, 1843). - Kelp greenling, Hexagrammos decagrammusHexagrammos decagrammusHexagrammos decagrammus is a marine fish known as the Kelp Greenling. It occurs in rocky inshore areas of the northern Pacific and is common on kelp beds and on sand bottoms. They feed on crustaceans, polychaete worms, brittle stars, mollusks, and small fishes. The young are food for steelhead and...
(PallasPeter Simon PallasPeter Simon Pallas was a German zoologist and botanist who worked in Russia.- Life and work :Pallas was born in Berlin, the son of Professor of Surgery Simon Pallas. He studied with private tutors and took an interest in natural history, later attending the University of Halle and the University...
, 1810). - Rock greenling, Hexagrammos lagocephalusHexagrammos lagocephalusHexagrammos lagocephalus is a colorful marine fish with the common name Rock Greenling in the Greenling family. It is sometimes known as Fringed Greenling and erroneously as the red rock trout.-Appearance:...
(PallasPeter Simon PallasPeter Simon Pallas was a German zoologist and botanist who worked in Russia.- Life and work :Pallas was born in Berlin, the son of Professor of Surgery Simon Pallas. He studied with private tutors and took an interest in natural history, later attending the University of Halle and the University...
, 1810). - Masked greenling, Hexagrammos octogrammus (PallasPeter Simon PallasPeter Simon Pallas was a German zoologist and botanist who worked in Russia.- Life and work :Pallas was born in Berlin, the son of Professor of Surgery Simon Pallas. He studied with private tutors and took an interest in natural history, later attending the University of Halle and the University...
, 1814). - Hexagrammos otakii 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:...
& Starks, 1895. - Whitespotted greenling, Hexagrammos stelleri Tilesius, 1810.
- Hexagrammos agrammus (Temminck
- Genus Ophiodon
- LingcodLingcodThe lingcod, Ophiodon elongatus, is a fish of the greenling family Hexagrammidae. It is the only extant member of the genus Ophiodon...
, Ophiodon elongatus GirardCharles Frédéric GirardCharles Frédéric Girard was a French biologist specializing in ichthyology and herpetology.Born in Mulhouse, France, he studied at the College of Neuchâtel, Switzerland as a student of Louis Agassiz. In 1847, he accompanied Agassiz as his assistant to Harvard...
, 1854.
- Lingcod
- Genus Oxylebius
- Painted greenlingPainted greenlingThe painted greenling, Oxylebius pictus, is a marine fish native to the eastern Pacific Ocean. Its range is from Kodiak Island, Alaska to central Baja California. It can reach a total size of 25 cm and has seven vertical dark bands. It inhabits rocky areas usually shallower than 50 m. It feeds on...
, Oxylebius pictus (GirardCharles Frédéric GirardCharles Frédéric Girard was a French biologist specializing in ichthyology and herpetology.Born in Mulhouse, France, he studied at the College of Neuchâtel, Switzerland as a student of Louis Agassiz. In 1847, he accompanied Agassiz as his assistant to Harvard...
, 1854).
- Painted greenling
- Genus Pleurogrammus
- Arabesque greenlingArabesque greenlingThe Arabesque greenling is a species of mackerel used in Japanese cuisine.The primary population of the fish is found off of the Sea of Okhotsk. According to legend, it was discovered by Nichiji.-Uses:...
, Pleurogrammus azonus 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:...
& Metz, 1913. - Atka mackerelAtka mackerelThe Atka mackerel, Pleurogrammus monopterygius, is a mackerel in the family Hexagrammidae. Atka mackerel are common to the northern Pacific ocean, and are one of only two members of the genus Pleurogrammus - the other being the Arabesque greenling...
, Pleurogrammus monopterygius (PallasPeter Simon PallasPeter Simon Pallas was a German zoologist and botanist who worked in Russia.- Life and work :Pallas was born in Berlin, the son of Professor of Surgery Simon Pallas. He studied with private tutors and took an interest in natural history, later attending the University of Halle and the University...
, 1810).
- Arabesque greenling
- Genus ZaniolepisZaniolepisZaniolepis is a genus of scorpaeniform fish known from the fossil record, with a single extant species. This genus is the only member of the subfamily Zaniolepidinae....
- Shortspine combfish, Zaniolepis frenata EigenmannRosa Smith EigenmannRosa Smith Eigenmann was the first notable female ichthyologist; first publishing in her own right, she later collaborated with her husband Carl H. Eigenmann, and some 150 species of fish are today credited "Eigenmann & Eigenmann" as a result.She was born in Monmouth, Illinois, the last of nine...
& EigenmannCarl H. EigenmannCarl H. Eigenmann was an ichthyologist who, along with his wife Rosa Smith Eigenmann, described many of the fishes of North America and South America for the first time....
, 1889. - Longspine combfish, Zaniolepis latipinnis GirardCharles Frédéric GirardCharles Frédéric Girard was a French biologist specializing in ichthyology and herpetology.Born in Mulhouse, France, he studied at the College of Neuchâtel, Switzerland as a student of Louis Agassiz. In 1847, he accompanied Agassiz as his assistant to Harvard...
, 1858.
- Shortspine combfish, Zaniolepis frenata Eigenmann