Lightfishes are small stomiiform fishes in the family Phosichthyidae The earliest fossils of lightfishes are from Oligocene-aged Paratethyan marine strata in the Czech Republic. They are very small fishes found in oceans throughout the world: most species grow no longer than 10 cm, while those in the genus ''

Vinciguerria ''Vinciguerria'' is a genus of lightfishes, family Phosichthyidae. It is named for Dr. Decio Vinciguerra (1856–1934), an Italian ichthyologist. Included species There are currently five extant species recognized in this genus: * '' Vinciguerri ...

'' only reach 4 cm or so. They make up for their small size with abundant numbers: ''

'' is thought — with the possible exception of ''

Cyclothone ''Cyclothone'' is a genus containing 13 extant species of bioluminescent fish, commonly known as 'bristlemouths' or 'bristlefishes' due to their shared characteristic of sharp, bristle-like teeth. These fishes typically grow to around 1-3 inches ...

'' — to be the most abundant genus of vertebrates. Deep-sea trawls of the

Humboldt Current The Humboldt Current, also called the Peru Current, is a cold, low- salinity ocean current that flows north along the western coast of South America.Montecino, Vivian, and Carina B. Lange. "The Humboldt Current System: Ecosystem components and pr ...

in the southeast Pacific have found that lightfishes make up 85% by mass of mesopelagic fishes, with ''

Vinciguerria lucetia ''Vinciguerria lucetia'' is a species of marine ray-finned fish in the genus ''Vinciguerria'' known by the common name Panama lightfish. It is a small bioluminescent fish, with two rows of tiny photophores along its body. It is very abundant in ...

'' by far the most numerous species. They are

bioluminescent Bioluminescence is the production and emission of light by living organisms. It is a form of chemiluminescence. Bioluminescence occurs widely in marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some Fungus, fungi, microorganisms including ...

fishes, possessing rows of photophores along their sides, with which they hunt planktonic invertebrates, especially krill. Generally, Phosichthidae have been noted to feed on two types of fish including Copepods and Amphipods. Copepods are small, deep-sea crustaceans that are easily hunted by Phosichthyidae. Amphipods are similar to Copepods because they are also smaller relatives of another species: shrimp.

References

Marine fish families Ray-finned fish families {{Stomiiformes-stub