Classification / Names
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Teleostei (teleosts) >
Ophidiiformes (Cusk eels) >
Ophidiidae (Cusk-eels) > Neobythitinae
Etymology: Tenuicephalus: Name from Latin 'tenuis' for thin, weak and 'cephalus' for 'head', referring to the delicate and weak nature of the head ossification which often results in damaged specimens when recovered from deep-water trawls.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; demersal; depth range 1037 - 1930 m (Ref. 125143). Tropical
Western Indian: Madagascar Channel and Western Pacific: Philippines.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 17.5 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 125143)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
This species is distinguished by the following charcters: precaudal vertebrae 15-16, loin vertebrae 2-4, last precaudal vertebrae without ribs; first gill arch with long gill rakers 17-21; pectoral-fin rays 16-18; HL:HD 1.37-1.55; maximal HD:HD through center of eye 1.75-1.90; weak head spines on ethmoidal and interorbital; opercular spine sharp and extruding; opercular flap small; scales on occiput, cheeks, opercle and maxilla; vomer narrow, naked or with few teeth or with one row of teeth; palatines narrow with 2-3 rows of teeth; basibranchial tooth patch small, narrow with 2 rows of teeth; otolith small, 5.0-6.5 % in HL, with single colliculum; OL:OH = 1.14-1.20; OL:TCL = 1.94-2.30 (Ref. 125143).
This species does not seem to venture far away from the continental slopes (Ref. 125143).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Schwarzhans, W.W. and P.R. Møller, 2021. Revision of the ‘dragon-head’ cusk eels of the genus Porogadus (Teleostei: Ophidiidae), with description of eight new species and one new genus. Zootaxa 5029(1):001-096. (Ref. 125143)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: of no interest
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = No PD50 data [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00380 (0.00167 - 0.00864), b=3.14 (2.94 - 3.34), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.5 ±0.6 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (11 of 100).