Teleostei (teleosts) >
Lophiiformes (Anglerfishes) >
Brachionichthyidae (Handfishes)
Etymology: Brachiopsilus: Name from Latin 'brachium' (arm) and Greek 'psilos' (bare or smooth), referring to the smooth surfaces of their body and arm-like pectoral fins; ziebelli: Named in honour of Alan Ziebell, a professional diver, who hand collected some of the first
specimens near the Actaeon Islands (D’Entrecasteaux Channel) when fishing for abalone. These specimens were initially displayed in a marine aquarium at his home a.
Eponymy: Alan Ziebell is a professional diver and abalone gatherer in Tasmania. He collected some of the first specimens and kept them in a marine aquarium at his home. (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
More on authors: Last & Gledhill.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; demersal; depth range 10 - 20 m (Ref. 82446). Temperate; 43°S - 44°S, 146°E - 148°E
Eastern Indian Ocean: Restricted to eastern and southern Tasmania, Australia.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 11.7 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 82446)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 18 - 20; Anal spines: 9 - 10. Member of the genus Brachiopsilus with a combination of the following characters: esca
small, 19–32% of illicium length; illicium thick, fleshy, length 18–24% SL, 2.4–3.0 times in head length, 1.2–1.4 times in length of second dorsal-fin spine; apex of esca situated well posterior of hind margin of eye when illicium adpressed; esca slightly wider than illicial stem, covered with dense, short papillae; head bulbous; eye small (horizontal diameter 5–6% SL); mouth broad; lips very fleshy with vertical folds; body and fins entirely naked in adults (except for scales associated with pores of the acoustico-lateralis system); 4 sensory pores
above eye; short first dorsal-fin base (length 21–25% SL); second dorsal-fin rays 16–18, length of fin base 63–70% SL; length of second dorsal-fin spine 0.8–1.2 times length of longest ray of second dorsal fin; 9–10 anal-fin rays, length of anal-fin base 34–38% SL; 9 pectoral-fin rays; short caudal peduncle (length 2–5% SL); caudal fin small, its length barely longer than fin rays of pectoral fin, length 2.7–3.4 times caudal peduncle depth; body whitish with fine, greyish purple peppering; fins vivid yellow (Ref. 82446).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Last, P. and D.C. Gledhill, 2009. A revision of the Australian handfishes (Lophiiformes: Brachionichthyidae), with descriptions of three new genera and nine new species. Zootaxa 2252:1-77. (Ref. 82446)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.6251 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00389 (0.00180 - 0.00842), b=3.12 (2.94 - 3.30), in cm total length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.8 ±0.7 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
![Image of Brachiopsilus ziebelli (Ziebell\](/images/thumbnails/gif/tn_BRACHIT0.gif "Image of Brachiopsilus ziebelli (Ziebell\")
