''Zaniolepis'', the combfishes, is a genus of marine

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

, it is one of two genera in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Zaniolepididae. These fishes are native to the eastern

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. ''Z. frenata'' that was a source of food to the

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

inhabitants of

San Nicolas Island San Nicolas Island (Spanish: ''Isla de San Nicolás''; Tongva: ''Haraasnga'') is the most remote of the Channel Islands, off Southern California, from the nearest point on the mainland coast. It is part of Ventura County. The island is current ...

off the coast of southern

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, United States during the

Middle Holocene In the geologic time scale, the Northgrippian is the middle one of three ages or stages of the Holocene Epoch or Series. It was officially ratified by the International Commission on Stratigraphy in June 2018 along with the earlier Greenlandian ...

.Vellanoweth, R. L. & Erlandson, J. M. (1999)
Middle Holocene Fishing and Maritime Adaptations at CA-SNI-161, San Nicolas Island, California.
''Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology, 21(2): pp. 257-274''

Taxonomy

''Zaniolepis'' was first proposed as a

monospecific genus In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

in 1858 by the French

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

Charles Frédéric Girard Charles Frédéric Girard (; 8 March 1822 – 29 January 1895) was a French biologist specializing in ichthyology and herpetology. Biography Girard was born on 8 March 1822 in Mulhouse, France. He studied at the College of Neuchâtel, Switzerl ...

when he described ''Z. longispinis'' from

Fort Steilacoom Fort Steilacoom was founded by the U.S. Army in 1849 near Lake Steilacoom. It was among the first military fortifications built by the U.S. north of the Columbia River in what was to become the State of Washington. The fort was constructed due ...

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

. This genus is one of two genera in the family Zaniolepidae, each of which is classified within a monotypic subfamily. The subfamily Zaniolepinae, along with the

Oxylebiinae The painted greenling (''Oxylebius pictus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Zaniolepididae, which includes this species and the combfishes. It is endemic to the northeast Pacific Ocean. It is the only species in t ...

, haves been classified as two subfamilies in the

Hexagrammidae Hexagrammidae, the greenlings, is a Family (biology), family of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the suborder Cottoidei in the Order (biology), order Perciformes. These fishes are found in the North Pacific Ocean. Taxonomy Hexagrammidae wa ...

Etymology

''Zaniolepis'' is a combination of ''xanion'', which is a Greek word for a comb used to card wool, and ''lepis'', meaning "scale", referring to the overlapping, almost ctenoid scales of ''Z. latipinnis''.

Species

The currently recognized species in this genus are:

Characteristics

''Zaniolepis'' combfishes have a deep incision in the rear third their

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 ...

and the first 3 spines in the dorsal fin are highly elongated, extremely so in ''Z. latipinnis''. 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 ...

contains 3 spines while the first 2 rays in 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 are long and robust and extend past the origin of the anal fin. The caudal fin truncated. These fishes reach a maximum length of .

Distribution and habitat

''Zaniolepis'' combfishes are found in the eastern North Pacific Ocean from Alaska to Baja California. They are benthic fishes.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q425791 Zaniolepididae Pleistocene fish Scorpaeniformes genera Pleistocene fish of North America Extant Pleistocene first appearances