Paraliparis skeliphrus
Encyclopedia
Paraliparis skeliphrus is a species of snailfish
. It was described in 2005 from a single poorly-preserved specimen of 71 mm standard length collected in 1966 off the Chile
an coast near Antofagasta
.
Despite the poor condition of the specimen, it is sufficiently distinctive to warrant specific status. It is most similar to Paraliparis fimbrianus but differs in the position and shape of the pectoral fins. It can easily be distinguished from other congener
s found in the region by a combination of characters including a horizontal mouth, the presence of teeth borne in bands on both jaws and the position of the pectoral fins far forward on the body.
From the circumstances of the collection, this is presumed to be a benthic
species.
Snailfish
Snailfish are scorpaeniform marine fish of the family Liparidae. Widely distributed from the Arctic to Antarctic Oceans including the northern Pacific, the snailfish family contains 30 genera and 361 species. They are closely related to the sculpins of the family Cottidae and the lumpfish of the...
. It was described in 2005 from a single poorly-preserved specimen of 71 mm standard length collected in 1966 off the Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an coast near Antofagasta
Antofagasta
Antofagasta is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2002 census, the city has a population of 296,905...
.
Despite the poor condition of the specimen, it is sufficiently distinctive to warrant specific status. It is most similar to Paraliparis fimbrianus but differs in the position and shape of the pectoral fins. It can easily be distinguished from other congener
Congener
Congener has several different meanings depending on the field in which it is used. Colloquially, it is used to mean a person or thing like another, in character or action.-Biology:In biology, congeners are organisms within the same genus...
s found in the region by a combination of characters including a horizontal mouth, the presence of teeth borne in bands on both jaws and the position of the pectoral fins far forward on the body.
From the circumstances of the collection, this is presumed to be a benthic
Benthos
Benthos is the community of organisms which live on, in, or near the seabed, also known as the benthic zone. This community lives in or near marine sedimentary environments, from tidal pools along the foreshore, out to the continental shelf, and then down to the abyssal depths.Many organisms...
species.