Softskin smooth-head

The softskin smooth-head (Rouleina attrita), also called the softskin slickhead, is a species of fish in the family Alepocephalidae.[3][4]

Softskin smooth-head
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Alepocephaliformes
Family: Alepocephalidae
Genus: Rouleina
Species:
R. attrita
Binomial name
Rouleina attrita
(Vaillant, 1888)
Synonyms[2]
  • Bathytroctes aequatoris Goode & Bean, 1896
  • Bathytroctes attritus Vaillant, 1888
  • Bathytroctes mollis Köhler, 1896
  • Caudania mollis Köhler, 1896
  • Rouleina attritus Vaillant, 1888
  • Rouleina mollis Köhler, 1896
  • Talismania mollis Köhler, 1896

Its specific name is from the Latin attrīta ("bruised, worn away"), presumably referring to the mutilated or decomposed state of the type specimens.[5]

Description

The softskin smooth-head is black, measuring up to 42 cm (17 in).[6] Its upper jaw reaches to behind the eye, and it has a lateral line of 43–48 photophores.[7] It has 43–46 vertebrae.[8] Its scales are deciduous and its skin contains small fluid-filled compartments.[9] Its eyes contain convexiclivate temporal foveae containing densely packed ganglia.[10]

Habitat

The softskin smooth-head is engybenthic or bathypelagic, meaning that it swims near the seafloor, living at depths of 450–2,300 m (1,480–7,550 ft). It has been recorded in all non-polar seas.[11][12]

Behaviour

Its testes are ribbon-like, in convoluted folds but never in discrete lobes. Its eggs are large, up to 3.2 mm (0.13 in) in diameter.[13]

References
  1. Museum), Percy (Butch) Hulley (South Africa (July 11, 2012). "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rouleina attrita". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species – via www.iucnredlist.org.
  2. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Rouleina attrita (Vaillant, 1888)". www.marinespecies.org.
  3. "Rouleina attrita". fishesofaustralia.net.au.
  4. Collin, Shaun P.; Marshall, N. Justin (April 8, 2008). Sensory Processing in Aquatic Environments. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9780387226286 – via Google Books.
  5. "Order ALEPOCEPHALIFORMES (Slickheads)". December 29, 2016.
  6. Smith, Margaret M.; Heemstra, Phillip C. (December 6, 2012). Smiths' Sea Fishes. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9783642828584 – via Google Books.
  7. Nations, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United (August 1, 2020). Identification guide to the mesopelagic fishes of the central and south east Atlantic Ocean. Food & Agriculture Org. ISBN 9789251330944 – via Google Books.
  8. "Fishery Bulletin". National Marine Fisheries Service. October 9, 1978 – via Google Books.
  9. McEachran, John; Fechhelm, Janice D. (June 17, 2013). Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico, Vol. 1: Myxiniformes to Gasterosteiformes. University of Texas Press. ISBN 9780292757059 – via Google Books.
  10. Cronin, Thomas W.; Johnsen, Sönke; Marshall, N. Justin; Warrant, Eric J. (August 10, 2014). Visual Ecology. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691151847 – via Google Books.
  11. "Sport Fishery Abstracts". Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. October 9, 1978 – via Google Books.
  12. "Rouleina attrita, Softskin smooth-head". www.fishbase.se.
  13. "Marine Species Identification Portal : Softskin smooth-head - Rouleina attrita". species-identification.org.
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