Psychrolutidae
Encyclopedia
The fish family Psychrolutidae contains the fatheads or fathead sculpins, including the blobfishes. There are 9 genera and about 30 species. This poorly known family consists of bottom-dwelling marine sculpin
s shaped like tadpole
s, with large heads and bodies that taper back into small, flat tails. They generally have large, leaflike pectoral fins and some species are covered with soft spines. They are found in the Atlantic
, Pacific
, and Indian Ocean
s. The adults live on the seafloor, between 100 metres (328.1 ft) and 1600 metres (5,249.3 ft) depth.
Although little research has been done yet on members of this family, they are considered quite interesting by ichthyologists. The blob sculpin
, Psychrolutes phrictus, for example, exhibits complex nest
ing behaviors complete with egg guarding.
Sculpin
A Sculpin is a fish that belongs to the order Scorpaeniformes, suborder Cottoidei and superfamily Cottoidea, that contains 11 families, 149 genera, and 756 species...
s shaped like tadpole
Tadpole
A tadpole or polliwog is the wholly aquatic larval stage in the life cycle of an amphibian, particularly that of a frog or toad.- Appellation :...
s, with large heads and bodies that taper back into small, flat tails. They generally have large, leaflike pectoral fins and some species are covered with soft spines. They are found in the Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, and Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
s. The adults live on the seafloor, between 100 metres (328.1 ft) and 1600 metres (5,249.3 ft) depth.
Although little research has been done yet on members of this family, they are considered quite interesting by ichthyologists. The blob sculpin
Blob sculpin
The Blob Sculpin is a species of deep-sea fish of the Psychrolutidae family. It feeds mainly on crustaceans, molluscs, and sea urchins....
, Psychrolutes phrictus, for example, exhibits complex nest
Nest
A nest is a place of refuge to hold an animal's eggs or provide a place to live or raise offspring. They are usually made of some organic material such as twigs, grass, and leaves; or may simply be a depression in the ground, or a hole in a tree, rock or building...
ing behaviors complete with egg guarding.
Species
- Genus Ambophthalmos
- Pale toadfishPale toadfishThe pale toadfish is a fathead of the family Psychrolutidae, found on the continental shelf around New Zealand, between 250 and 1,000 metres...
, Ambophthalmos angustus (Nelson, 1977) - Ambophthalmos eurystigmatephoros Jackson & Nelson, 1999
- Frilled toadfishFrilled toadfishThe frilled toadfish is a fathead of the family Psychrolutidae, found on the continental shelf around Australia's Macquarie Island.-References:...
, Ambophthalmos magnicirrus (Nelson, 1977)
- Pale toadfish
- Genus Cottunculus Collett, 1875
- Cottunculus granulosus Karrer, 1968
- Cottunculus konstantinovi Myagkov, 1991
- Cottunculus microps Collett, 1875
- Cottunculus nudus Nelson, 1989
- Cottunculus sadko Essipov, 1937
- Cottunculus spinosus Gilchrist, 1906
- Cottunculus thomsonii (Günther, 1882)
- Cottunculus tubulosus Byrkjedal & Orlov, 2007
- Genus Dasycottus
- Genus Ebinania
- Genus Eurymen
- Genus Gilbertidia
- Genus Malacocottus
- Genus Neophrynichthys
- Neophrynichthys heterospilos Jackson & Nelson, 2000
- Dark toadfishDark toadfishThe dark toadfish, Neophrynichthys latus, is a fathead of the family Psychrolutidae, found on the continental shelf around New Zealand.-References:...
, Neophrynichthys latus (Hutton, 1875)
- Genus PsychrolutesPsychrolutesPsychrolutes is a genus of deep-sea fish of the family Psychrolutidae . In June 2003, During the NORFANZ Expedition north-west of New Zealand, scientists trawled a specimen of the fathead Psychrolutes microporos at a depth between 1,013 meters and 1,340 meters on the Norfolk Ridge....