| Family: |
Trichiuridae (Cutlassfishes), subfamily: Lepidopodinae |
| Max. size: |
250 cm SL (male/unsexed) |
| Environment: |
benthopelagic; marine; depth range 150 - 400 m |
| Distribution: |
Atlantic Ocean: Walvis Ridge, off Puerto Rico and Uruguay. Indian Ocean: off western Australia. Pacific Ocean: off New Guinea, southern Japan, Midway Island, California, Nazca and Sala y Gomez Ridge. |
| Diagnosis: |
Dorsal soft rays (total): 116-123; Anal spines: 2-2; Anal soft rays: 74-87; Vertebrae: 125-129. Body very elongate and compressed. Head profile straight or scarcely convex, with sagittal crest strongly elevated. Both jaws have a short dermal process; the lower jaw longer than the upper jaw. The dorsal fin has a few weak anterior spines that hardly differ from the soft rays. Body color silvery, dorsal fin membrane black before the third to the fourth soft ray. |
| Biology: |
Probably benthopelagic from 150 to 400 m, juveniles epipelagic or mesopelagic. Feeds on fishes (including Engraulis mordax and Merluccius productus off California) and squids. Occasionally hooked, captured in nets, or found washed ashore. No special fishery. |
| IUCN Red List Status: |
Not Evaluated (N.E.) Ref. (130435)
|
| Threat to humans: |
harmless |
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