''Brachiopsilus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of marine

ray-finned fishes Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class (biology), class of Osteichthyes, bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built ...

belonging to family Brachionichthyidae, the handfishes. The fishes in this genus are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to Australia.

Taxonomy

''Brachiopsilus'' was first proposed as a genus in 2009 by the Australian zoologists

Peter R. Last Peter Robert Last is an Australian ichthyologist, curator of the Australian National Fish Collection and a senior principal research scientist at CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research (CMAR) in Hobart, Tasmania. He is an elasmobranch expert and ...

and Daniel C. Gledhill when they described the three species within the genus. They designated ''B. ziebelli'' as the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

in the new genus. This genus is classified within the family Brachionichthyidae which the 5th edition of ''

Fishes of the World ''Fishes of the World'' is a standard reference for the systematics of fishes. It was first written in 1976 by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011). Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of t ...

'' classifies the family Brachionichthyidae within the

suborder Order () is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and recognized ...

Antennarioidei Antennarioidei is a suborder of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes. Taxonomy Antennarioidei was first proposed as a taxonomic grouping in 1912 by the English ichthyologist Charles Tate Regan. The 5th e ...

within the

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes.

Etymology

''Brachiopsilus'' is a combination of ''brachium'', which means "arm", and ''psilos'', meaning "bare" or "smooth". This is an allusion to the smooth skin on the body and the arm-like

pectoral fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish aquatic locomotion, swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the vertebral column ...

Species

''Brachiopsilus'' currently has 3 recognised species within it: * '' Brachiopsilus dianthus'' Last & Gledhill, 2009 (Pink handfish) * '' Brachiopsilus dossenus'' Last & Gledhill, 2009 (Humpback handfish) * '' Brachiopsilus ziebelli'' Last & Gledhill, 2009 (Ziebell's handfish)

Characteristics

''Brachiopsilus'' handfishes are characterised by having a relatively deep body, the depth of the body at the origin of the second

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...

being equivalent to 31% to 43% of the

standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of fish anatomy, their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is ...

. They have large heads, the length of the head is equivalent to between 43% and 58% of the standard length and is slightly compressed in cross section. They have rather short

caudal peduncle Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported only ...

s. The

illicium ''Illicium'' is a genus of flowering plants treated as part of the family Schisandraceae,

may be short or long but is thin and is between 3 and 5 times the length of the esca. They have thick skin which is smooth but may have low ridges within it but does not have any enlarged, fleshy warts on it. The body or fins are brightly coloured or may have a strong pattern of speckles. The pectoral fin typically has 9 fin rays, sometimes 10 and 9 or 10 soft rays in the

anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...

. Th smallest fish in the genus is the humpback handfish (''B. dossenus'') with a maximum published standard length of while the largest is Ziebell's handfish (''B. ziebelli'') with a maximum published standard length of .

Distribution

''Brachiopsilus'' handfishes are endemic to southern Australia where they are found off the coasts of

Victoria (state) Victoria, commonly abbreviated as Vic, is a States and territories of Australia, state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state (after Tasmania), with a land area of ; the second-most-populated state (after New South Wales), ...

and

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

References

External links

National Geographic, including photos
{{Taxonbar, from=Q4953337 Brachionichthyidae Marine fish genera Taxa named by Peter R. Last