Rhinochimaera pacifica

Rhinochimaera pacifica
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Chondrichthyes
Order: Chimaeriformes
Family: Rhinochimaeridae
Genus: Rhinochimaera
Species: R. pacifica
Binomial name
Rhinochimaera pacifica
Mitsukuri, 1895

Rhinochimaera pacifica, commonly known as the Pacific spookfish, knifenose chimaera, narrownose chimaera, Pacific long-nosed chimaera, or Pinocchiofish, is a species of chimaera in the family Rhinochimaeridae.[1] It lives in various parts of the Pacific Ocean and can be characterized by its long snout.

Description

R. pacifica grows to a total length of roughly 130 cm, with a body length of roughly 62 cm. Female specimens are typically larger than males.[2] It has a long, narrow snout and smooth tooth plates. One of its two dorsal fins is short in length but tall, while the other is lower and longer. Its caudal fin is long, and contains denticles on its upper lobe. It has a brown upperside and a more greyish-brown underside, with a white snout.[3][4][5] It has been observed that specimens in the northwest Pacific are considerably darker than ones in the southwest Pacific.[2]

Distribution

R. pacifica lives in the Northwestern and Southwestern parts of the Pacific Ocean. In particular, it occurs in Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, and Taiwan. It also lives in Peru, and may occur in the deeper waters of the rest of the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Its population is unknown. It is sometimes taken as a bycatch, but otherwise has little or no threats. It is listed as Least Concern (LC) by IUCN.[2] It lives in depths of 760 m to 1290 m.[4][6]

References

  1. ↑ Froese, R.; Pauly, D. "Rhinochimaera pacifica (Mitsukuri, 1895)". WoRMS. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Dagit, D.D.; Kyne, P.M. "Rhinochimaera pacifica (Knifenose Chimaera, Pacific Spookfish)". IUCN. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  3. ↑ Bray, D.J.; Reardon, M.B. "Rhinochimaera pacifica". Fishes of Australia. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  4. 1 2 "Pacific Spookfish, Rhinochimaera pacifica (Mitsukuri, 1895)". Australian Museum. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  5. ↑ Garilao, Cristina V. "Rhinochimaera pacifica, Pacific spookfish". FishBase. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  6. ↑ "Rhinochimaera pacifica". Shark-References. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
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