Anarhichadidae
Anarhichadidae | |
---|---|
Northern wolffish, Anarhichas denticulatus | |
Scientific 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
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
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
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
- ^ PMID 25543675.
- ^ a b c d e Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2022). "Anarhichadidae" in FishBase. February 2022 version.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6. Archived from the originalon 2019-04-08. Retrieved 2022-07-24.
- PMID 28683774.
- ^ 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.
- ^ 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.
- ^ ISSN 1545-150X.
- ^ "Wolffish". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 24 July 2022.
- ^ "Fisheries, NOAA. "Atlantic Wolffish." NOAA". 2 December 2020.
- "Anarhichadidae". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 5 December 2004.
- Sepkoski, Jack (2002). "A compendium of fossil marine animal genera". Bulletins of American Paleontology. 364: 560. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-05-18.
- “The Wolffishes (Family : Anarhichadidae).” Finfish Aquaculture Diversification, by R. Le François Nathalie, CABI, 2010, pp. 417–418.