The luminous hake (''Steindachneria argentea'') is a West Atlantic member of the Merluccidae family. It is the only member of its genus.

Characteristics

Luminous hake grow to a maximum of in total length. They have a silver colored body with slight brown coloring in dorsal areas, a purple tint ventrally, and a dark

oral cavity A mouth also referred to as the oral is the body orifice through which many animals ingest food and vocalize. The body cavity immediately behind the mouth opening, known as the oral cavity (or in Latin), is also the first part of the alime ...

. They have big eyes on a large head and a tapering body that ends in a point since they have no

caudal 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 only ...

. Their

luminosity Luminosity is an absolute measure of radiated electromagnetic radiation, electromagnetic energy per unit time, and is synonymous with the radiant power emitted by a light-emitting object. In astronomy, luminosity is the total amount of electroma ...

comes from a characteristic striated light organ on the sides of the head and lower (ventral) half of the body. The anus is found between the

pelvic fin Pelvic fins or ventral fins are paired fins located on the ventral (belly) surface of fish, and are the lower of the only two sets of paired fins (the other being the laterally positioned pectoral fins). The pelvic fins are homologous to the hi ...

s and is widely separated from the

urogenital The genitourinary system, or urogenital system, are the sex organs of the reproductive system and the organ (biology), organs of the urinary system. These are grouped together because of their proximity to each other, Development of the urinary a ...

opening located anterior to 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 ...

. Luminous hake have uninterrupted

lateral line The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelia ...

s. They have a combined total of 18–20

gill raker Gill rakers in fish are bony or cartilaginous processes that project from the branchial arch (gill arch) and are involved with suspension feeding tiny prey. They are not to be confused with the gill filaments that compose the fleshy part of th ...

s with five on the upper limb and 13–15 on the lower limb. The front of the first of two

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 ...

s is the location of its one spine. The one anal fin is made up of a total of 123–125 soft rays. They possess paired pectoral and pelvic fins. The pectoral fins have 14–17 soft rays. The pelvic fins are located in the

thoracic The thorax (: thoraces or thoraxes) or chest is a part of the anatomy of mammals and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main ...

region.

Distribution

Luminous hake are common in deep water but can be found on the outer shelf and on soft muddy bottoms of the Western Atlantic,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, northern

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

through

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

. The luminous hake occur at a depth range of .

Other information

* This species is of no interest by fisheries. * ''

Merluccius albidus ''Merluccius albidus'', sometimes known as the offshore hake, offshore silver hake, or offshore whiting, is a species of fish in the family Merlucciidae. It is found on the outer (offshore) continental shelf at depths of in the west Atlantic, ra ...

'' is a predator of luminous hake.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q136205 luminous hake Fish of the Caribbean Fish of the Gulf of Mexico luminous hake