Grenadiers or rattails are generally large, brown to black
gadiform marine
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% ...
of the
subfamily Macrourinae,
[ the largest subfamily of the ]family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Macrouridae
Macrouridae is a family of deep sea fish, a diverse and ecologically important group, which are part of the order of cod-like fish, the Gadiformes. The species in the Macrouridae are characterised by their large heads which normally have a sing ...
. Found at great depths from the Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada ( Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm ( Greenland), Finland, Iceland ...
to Antarctic
The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and o ...
, members of this subfamily are amongst the most abundant of the deep-sea fish.
The macrourins form a large and diverse family with 28 extant genera recognized (well over half of the total species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...
are contained in just three genera, '' Coelorinchus'', '' Coryphaenoides'', and '' Nezumia''). They range in length from about in ''Hymenogadus gracilis'' to in ''Albatrossia pectoralis''. Several attempts have been made to establish a commercial fishery for the most common larger species, such as the giant grenadier, but the fish is considered unpalatable, and attempts thus far have proven unsuccessful. The subfamily as a whole may represent up to 15% of the deep-sea fish population.
Rattails, characterized by large heads with large mouths and eyes, have slender bodies that taper very much to very thin caudal peduncles or tails (except for one species without a caudal fin): this rat-like tail explains the common name "rattail" and the name of the subfamily and the surname are derived from the Greek makros meaning "big" and Oura meaning "tail". The first dorsal flat is small, tall and pointed (and may have rays modified into spines); The second dorsal fin runs along the rest of the back and connects to the tail and the large anal fin. The scales are small.
As with many deep-living fish, the lateral line system in grenadiers is well-developed; it is further aided by numerous chemoreceptor
A chemoreceptor, also known as chemosensor, is a specialized sensory receptor which transduces a chemical substance (endogenous or induced) to generate a biological signal. This signal may be in the form of an action potential, if the chemorecep ...
s located on the head and lips and chemosensory barbel Barbel may refer to:
*Barbel (anatomy), a whisker-like organ near the mouth found in some fish (notably catfish, loaches and cyprinids) and turtles
*Barbel (fish), a common name for certain species of fish
**''Barbus barbus'', a species of cyprinid ...
s underneath the chin. Benthic
The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from ancient Greek, βένθος (bénthos), meaning "t ...
species have swim bladder
The swim bladder, gas bladder, fish maw, or air bladder is an internal gas-filled organ that contributes to the ability of many bony fish (but not cartilaginous fish) to control their buoyancy, and thus to stay at their current water depth w ...
s with unique muscles attached to them. The animals are thought to use these muscles to "strum" their bladders and produce sound, possibly playing a role in courtship and mate location. Light-producing organs, photophore
A photophore is a glandular organ that appears as luminous spots on various marine animals, including fish and cephalopods. The organ can be simple, or as complex as the human eye; equipped with lenses, shutters, color filters and reflectors, h ...
s, are present in some species; they are located in the middle of the abdomen, just before the anus and underneath the skin.
Grenadiers have been recorded from depths of about , and are among the most common benthic fish of the deep (however, two genera are known to prefer the midwater). They may be solitary or may form large schools, as with the roundnose grenadiers. The benthic species are attracted to structural oases, such as hydrothermal vents, cold seep
A cold seep (sometimes called a cold vent) is an area of the ocean floor where hydrogen sulfide, methane and other hydrocarbon-rich fluid seepage occurs, often in the form of a brine pool. ''Cold'' does not mean that the temperature of the see ...
s, and shipwreck
A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. Angela Croome reported in January 1999 that there were approximately ...
s. They are thought to be generalists, feeding on smaller fish, pelagic crustacea
Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean gro ...
ns such as shrimp
Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...
, amphipods, cumacea
Cumacea is an order of small marine crustaceans of the superorder Peracarida, occasionally called hooded shrimp or comma shrimp. Their unique appearance and uniform body plan makes them easy to distinguish from other crustaceans. They live in sof ...
ns, and less often cephalopod
A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda ( Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head, ...
s and lanternfish
Lanternfishes (or myctophids, from the Greek μυκτήρ ''myktḗr'', "nose" and ''ophis'', "serpent") are small mesopelagic fish of the large family Myctophidae. One of two families in the order Myctophiformes, the Myctophidae are represented ...
. As well as being important apex predators in the benthic habitat, some species are also notable as scavengers.
As few rattail larva
A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle.
Th ...
e have been recovered, little is known of their life histories. They are known to produce a large number (over 100,000) of tiny ( in diameter) eggs made buoyant by lipid
Lipids are a broad group of naturally-occurring molecules which includes fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, phospholipids, and others. The functions of lipids incl ...
droplets. The eggs are presumed to float up to the thermocline
A thermocline (also known as the thermal layer or the metalimnion in lakes) is a thin but distinct layer in a large body of fluid (e.g. water, as in an ocean or lake; or air, e.g. an atmosphere) in which temperature changes more drastically with ...
(the interface between warmer surface waters and cold, deeper waters) where they develop. The juveniles remain in shallower waters, gradually migrating to greater depths with age.
Spawning may or may not be tied to the seasons, depending on the species. At least one species, ''Coryphaenoides armatus
The abyssal grenadier, ''Coryphaenoides armatus'', is an abyssal fish of the genus ''Coryphaenoides'', found in all the world's oceans, at depths between . Its adult length is , although Fishbase gives lengths up to . The abyssal grenadier's bod ...
'', is thought to be semelparous
Semelparity and iteroparity are two contrasting reproductive strategies available to living organisms. A species is considered semelparous if it is characterized by a single reproductive episode before death, and iteroparous if it is characteri ...
; that is, the adults die after spawning. Nonsemelparous species may live to 56 years or more. The macrourins, in general, are thought to have low resilience; commercially exploited species may be overfished and this could soon lead to a collapse of their fisheries.
Genera
Currently 28 extant genera in this subfamily are recognized:[Iwamoto, T., Nakayama, N., Shao, K.-T. & Ho, H.-C. (2015): Synopsis of the Grenadier Fishes (Gadiformes; Teleostei) of Taiwan. ''Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, 62 (3): 31-126.'']
* ''Albatrossia
''Albatrossia pectoralis'', the giant grenadier or giant rattail, is a very large rattail, and the only member of the genus ''Albatrossia''. It is found in the north Pacific from northern Japan to the Okhotsk and Bering Seas, east to the Gulf o ...
'' Jordan & Gilbert, 1898
* ''Asthenomacrurus
''Asthenomacrurus'' is a genus of rattails of the family Macrouridae.
Species
The currently recognized species in this genus are:
* '' Asthenomacrurus fragilis'' (Garman Garman is a surname or first name. Notable people with the name include:
S ...
'' Sazonov & Shcherbachev, 1982
* ''Cetonurichthys
''Cetonurichthys subinflatus'', the smallpore whiptail, is a species of rattail found off western Australia. It is a benthic fish which occurs at depths of on the continental slope
A continental margin is the outer edge of continental crust ...
'' Sazonov & Shcherbachev, 1982
* ''Cetonurus
''Cetonurus'' is a genus of rattail
Grenadiers or rattails are generally large, brown to black gadiform marine fish of the subfamily Macrourinae, the largest subfamily of the family Macrouridae. Found at great depths from the Arctic to Anta ...
'' Günther, 1887
* '' Coelorinchus'' Giorna, 1809
* '' Coryphaenoides'' Gunnerus, 1765
* '' Cynomacrurus'' Dollo, 1909
* '' Echinomacrurus'' Roule, 1916
* ''Haplomacrourus
''Haplomacrourus nudirostris'', the naked snout rattail, is a benthic species of rattail found in the southern oceans where it occurs on the continental slope
A continental margin is the outer edge of continental crust abutting oceanic crust ...
'' Trunov, 1980
* ''Hymenocephalus
''Hymenocephalus'' is the scientific name of two genera of organisms and may refer to:
* ''Hymenocephalus'' (fish), a genus of fishes in the family Macrouridae
* ''Hymenocephalus'' (plant), a genus of plants in the family Asteraceae
{{Genus ...
'' Giglioli, 1884
* ''Hymenogadus
''Hymenogadus'' is a genus of rattails, marine fish.
Species
There are currently 2 recognized species in this genus:
* '' Hymenogadus gracilis'' Gilbert Gilbert may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Gilbert (given name), including a ...
'' Gilbert & Hubbs, 1920
* ''Kumba
Kumba is a metropolitan city in the Meme department, Southwest Region, Western Cameroon, referred as "K-town" in local slang. Kumba is the most developed and largest city in the Meme Department and has attracted people from the local villag ...
'' Marshall, 1973
* ''Kuronezumia
''Kuronezumia'' is a genus of rattails.
Species
There are currently six recognized species in this genus:
* ''Kuronezumia bubonis'' (Tomio Iwamoto, Iwamoto, 1974) (Bulbous rattail)
* ''Kuronezumia darus'' (Charles Henry Gilbert, C. H. Gilbert & ...
'' Iwamoto, 1974
* ''Lepidorhynchus
The thorntooth grenadier or javelin fish, ''Lepidorhynchus denticulatus'', is a rattail, the only member of the genus ''Lepidorhynchus'', found around southern Australia and New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country ...
'' Richardson, 1846
* ''Lucigadus
''Lucigadus'' is a genus of rattails.
Species
There are currently 7 recognized species in this genus:
* ''Lucigadus acrolophus'' Tomio Iwamoto, Iwamoto & Nigel Robert Merrett, Merrett, 1997
* ''Lucigadus borealis'' Iwamoto & Makoto Okamoto, Okam ...
'' Gilbert & Hubbs, 1920
* '' Macrosmia'' Merrett, Sazonov & Shcherbachev, 1983
* ''Macrourus
''Macrourus'' is a small benthopelagic genus of rattails from the family Macrouridae.
General features
The species in the genus ''Macrourus'' have large broad heads which are over four times as deep as it is long with a snout which varies from ...
'' Bloch, 1786
* ''Malacocephalus
''Malacocephalus'' is a genus of rattails.
Species
There are currently seven recognized species in this genus:
* ''Malacocephalus boretzi'' Yuri Igorevich Sazonov, Sazonov, 1985
* ''Malacocephalus hawaiiensis'' Charles Henry Gilbert, C. H. Gilb ...
'' Günther, 1862
* ''Mataeocephalus
''Mataeocephalus'' is a genus of rattails.
Species
There are currently six recognized species in this genus:
* '' Mataeocephalus acipenserinus'' (Gilbert & Cramer, 1897) (Sturgeon grenadier)
* '' Mataeocephalus adustus'' H. M. Smith & Radcliffe ...
'' Berg, 1898
* ''Mesovagus
''Mesovagus'' is a genus of rattails found in Indian and Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending ...
'' Nakayama & Endo, 2016 [Nakayama, N. & Endo, H. (2016): ''Mesovagus'', a replacement name for the grenadier genus ''Mesobius'' Hubbs and Iwamoto 1977 (Actinopterygii: Gadiformes: Macrouridae), a junior homonym of ''Mesobius'' Chamberlin 1951 (Chilopoda: Lithobiomorpha: Lithobiidae). ''Ichthyological Research, 64 (1): 120–122.'']
* '' Nezumia'' Jordan, 1904
* ''Odontomacrurus
''Odontomacrurus murrayi'', the roundhead grenadier, is a bathypelagic or mesopelagic species of rattail
Grenadiers or rattails are generally large, brown to black gadiform marine fish of the subfamily Macrourinae, the largest subfamily of ...
'' Norman, 1939
* ''Paracetonurus
''Paracetonurus flagellicauda'' is a species of fish in the subfamily Macrourinae (grenadiers or rattails). Some sources place it in the genus '' Pseudonezumia''.
Description
''Paracetonurus flagellicauda'' has a slender body, tapering to a st ...
'' Marshall, 1973
* ''Pseudocetonurus
''Pseudocetonurus septifer'' is a species of rattail, the only known species in the genus ''Pseudocetonurus''. This fish is found at depths of up to 950 m in the waters around Hawaii and in the south-eastern Pacific. It has recently also been rec ...
'' Sazonov & Shcherbachev, 1982
* ''Pseudonezumia
''Pseudonezumia'' is a genus of rattails. The generic name means "false ''Nezumia''".
Species
There are currently five recognized species in this genus:
* '' Pseudonezumia cetonuropsis'' ( C. H. Gilbert & C. L. Hubbs, 1916)
* '' Pseudonezumia j ...
'' Okamura, 1970
* ''Sphagemacrurus
''Sphagemacrurus'' is a genus of rattails.
Species
There are currently six recognized species in this genus:
* '' Sphagemacrurus decimalis'' ( C. H. Gilbert & C. L. Hubbs, 1920)
* '' Sphagemacrurus gibber'' ( C. H. Gilbert & Cramer, 1897)
* '' ...
'' Fowler, 1925
* ''Spicomacrurus
''Spicomacrurus'' is a genus of rattail
Grenadiers or rattails are generally large, brown to black gadiform marine fish of the subfamily Macrourinae, the largest subfamily of the family Macrouridae. Found at great depths from the Arctic to ...
'' Okamura, 1970
* '' Trachonurus'' Günther, 1887
* ''Ventrifossa
''Ventrifossa'' is a genus of rattails in the family Macrouridae.
Species
There are currently 23 recognized species in this genus
* '' Ventrifossa atherodon'' ( C. H. Gilbert & Cramer, 1897) (Arrowtooth grenadier)
* '' Ventrifossa ctenomelas'' ( ...
'' Gilbert & Hubbs, 1920
See also
* List of fish common names
This is a list of common names of fish. While some common names refer to a single species, others may be used for an entire group of species, such as a genus or family, and still others have been used confusingly for multiple unrelated species or ...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1883040
Macrouridae
Taxa named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte