Anarhichadidae

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Anarhichadidae
Northern wolffish, Anarhichas denticulatus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scorpaeniformes
Suborder: Zoarcoidei
Family: Anarhichadidae
Bonaparte, 1832 [1]
Genera[2]

See text

Anarhichadidae, the wolffishes, sea wolves or wolf eels, is a family of marine

ray finned fishes belonging to the order Scorpaeniformes
. These are predatory, eel shaped fishes which are native to the cold waters of the Arctic, North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans.

Taxonomy

Anarhichadidae was first proposed as a family in 1832 by the French

Etymology

Anarhichadidae is derived from the name of its type genus Anarhichas which is an Ancient Greek name for the Atlantic wolffish (A. lupus) and means "the climber", in turn derived from the Greek anarrhichesis which means "to climb or scramble up". This may be an allusion to the ancient belief that wolffishes left the water and climbed up on the rocks.[5]

Genera and species

Anarhichadidae contains two genera and five species:[2][6]

Image Genus Living species
Anarhichas Linnaeus, 1758
Anarrhichthys
Ayres, 1855

Timeline of genera

QuaternaryNeogenePaleogeneHolocenePleist.Plio.MioceneOligoceneEocenePaleoceneAnarrhichthysAnarhichasQuaternaryNeogenePaleogeneHolocenePleist.Plio.MioceneOligoceneEocenePaleocene

Characteristics

Anarhichadidae wolfishes have a largely compressed and, in the genus Anarhichas, a moderately elongate body. Anarrhichthys has an extremely elongate body, and this has given rise to its common name of wolf-eel. The long

total length is for Anarrhichthys ocellatus and is 240 cm (94 in).[2]

Distribution and habitat

Anarhichadidae wolfishes prefer cooler waters and are found in the northern parts of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans as well as in the Arctic Ocean.[3] They are demersal fishes occurring in shallow to moderately deep and cold seas.[2]

Biology

Anarhichadidae wolffishes use their large teeth to feed on a diet of shelled invertebrates such as crabs, starfishes and sea urchins, as well as other prey,[8] The peak mating season for wolffish is September to October. The male wolffish will guard the eggs 3–9 months until they hatch.[9]

Fisheries

Anarhichadidae wolffishes, in particular two Atlantic species, the spotted wolffish and the Atlantic wolffish, are targeted by commercial fisheries. The flesh is used for food and the skin to make leather.[7]

References

  1. ^
    PMID 25543675
    .
  2. ^ a b c d e Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2022). "Anarhichadidae" in FishBase. February 2022 version.
  3. ^
    ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6. Archived from the original
    on 2019-04-08. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
  4. .
  5. ^ Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (4 July 2021). "Order Perciformes (Part 11): Suborder Cottoidea: Infraorder Zoarcales: Families: Anarhichadidae, Neozoarcidae, Eulophias, Stichaeidae, Lumpenidae, Ophistocentridae, Pholidae, Ptilichthyidae, Zaproridae, Cryptacanthodidae, Cebidichthyidae, Scytalinidae and Bathymasteridae". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 24 July 2022.
  6. ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Anarhichadidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  7. ^
    ISSN 1545-150X
    .
  8. ^ "Wolffish". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 24 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Fisheries, NOAA. "Atlantic Wolffish." NOAA". 2 December 2020.