Ridge scaled rattail
The ridge scaled rattail[2] or ridge-scaled grenadier,[3] Macrourus carinatus, is a species of deep-water fish in the family Macrouridae.[1][2] It has southern circumglobal distribution in temperate to subantarctic waters (34°S–65°S) and is found in the Southern Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans and in the Southern Ocean[1][2] at depths of about 200–1,200 m (660–3,940 ft).[2]
| Ridge scaled rattail | |
|---|---|
.gif) | |
| Drawing by Dr Tony Ayling | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Gadiformes |
| Family: | Macrouridae |
| Subfamily: | Macrourinae |
| Genus: | Macrourus |
| Species: | M. carinatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Macrourus carinatus (Günther, 1878) | |
| Synonyms[1][2] | |
| |
Description and life history
Macrourus carinatus can reach 1 m (3 ft 3 in) in total length[2][3] and about 36 cm (14 in) in pre-anal length.[3] The eyes are relatively large. The snout is short and moderately pointed. Coloration is medium brown to somewhat straw color, with darker, sometimes even blackish fins.[2]
In the waters of the Falkland Islands, females reach 50% maturity at 21 cm (8.3 in) pre-anal length and 14 years of age. Males reach 50% maturity at 16 cm (6.3 in) pre-anal length and 12 years of age. Spawning occurs throughout the year but peaks during the austral autumn (April–July). Females also have a larger asymptotic pre-anal length than males, 31 and 25 cm (12.2 and 9.8 in), respectively. Maximum recorded age is 53 years.[3]
Fisheries
Macrourus carinatus is a commercial fishery species.[2][3] Targeted fishery along the Patagonian continental slope reached a peak of 50,000 tonnes in 1988 but declined precipitously thereafter. At present, it is treated as a by-catch species that is not allowed to exceed 10% of daily catches in weight.[3]
References
- Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Macrourus carinatus". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
- Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2019). "Macrourus carinatus" in FishBase. February 2019 version.
- Lee, Brendon; Cockroft, Kate; Arkhipkin, Alexander I.; Wing, Stephen R. & Randhawa, Haseeb S. (2019). "Age, growth and mortality estimates for the ridge-scaled grenadier Macrourus carinatus (Günther, 1878) in the south-western Atlantic". Fisheries Research. 218: 174–185. doi:10.1016/j.fishres.2019.05.012. S2CID 190880646.
- Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8