Anotopterus

Anotopterus vorax

Anotopterus ( = " without dorsal fin " ( Gr.: a = without, noton = back, pteryx, IGOs = fin ) ) is a genus of lizard fish relatives ( Aulopiformes ) and the only genus of the family Anotopteridae. It occurs in temperate and polar oceans.

Features

The fish are one meter to 1.5 meters long. With its elongated shape and its deeply divided, occupied with large fanged maw they resemble the related lance fish ( Alepisaurus ). However, they lack the dorsal fin. A well developed adipose fin is present, however. The skin is scaleless, and light organs missing. The pelvic fins are tiny with 9 to 11 fin rays. The pectoral fins have 12 to 15 fin rays. The number of vertebrae is 78 to 83

Way of life

Anotopterus species living from the sea surface to depths 2500-5000 meters. Fully Accreted Anotopterus rather live in cold ocean regions, while juveniles are found in warmer regions. The fish feed mainly on smaller fish. In Anotopterus nikparini was also the introduction of the molluscs, crustaceans, worms, jellyfish and salps, vorax the found of small cephalopods at Anotopterus. Among the prey fish include related species from the family of Barrakudinas as Risso's salmon eel ( Arctozenus risso ) Notolepis coatsi and the Nordic salmon eel ( Paralepis coregonoides )

Species

So far, three types have been described:

• Anotopterus nikparini Kukuev, 1998, Northern Pacific, Gulf of Alaska, south to Baja California and Japan.
• Anotopterus pharaoh Zugmayer, 1911, the Northern Atlantic Ocean, from the Canary Islands and Madeira to Greenland and the Davis Strait.
• Anotopterus vorax ( Regan, 1913), Southern Ocean.

Outer systematics

Anotopterus heard within the Eidechsenfisch relatives to the subordination Alepisauroidei or the superfamily Alepisauroidea ( at Davis ). It is according to Fishbase the only genus of the family Anotopteridae. The American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson, the genus in his standard work on fish systematics Fishes of the World, however, in the family of Barrakudinas ( Paralepididae ). Davis places the genus in a recent study on the systematics of Aulopiformes along with her sister genus, the genus Barrakudina Magnisudis, Alepisaurus and Omosudis the Alepisauridae family who receives an extended composition so.