Macrouridae
giant grenadier
Albatrossia pectoralis
FISH SPECIES
Saltwater Fish
Saltwater tells you where a fish may live, but it says little about the space it actually uses. A sheltered estuary, a shallow coral reef, the open water above a continental shelf and the deep seafloor differ in light, movement, food and shelter. NOAA describes essential fish habitat in terms of the places needed for feeding, growth and reproduction. Those functions are more useful than treating all marine records as one ecological category.
FISH ATLAS / FIELD GUIDESaltwater FishIN THIS CHAPTER01 / Characteristics02 / Lifestyle03 / Species04 / Field notes
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01 / NATURAL HISTORY
Characteristics
Pelagic means living in the water column; benthic refers to a relationship with the bottom. These are positions, not family names. A fish may forage above the bottom and rest beside it, while another crosses open water far from shore. The depth and substrate reported by an observer therefore matter more than a simple sea icon. Current, suspended food and hiding places also change across a coast or shelf.
- 01Osmoregulation in saline waters
- 02Hydrodynamic & camouflaged forms
- 03Complex marine trophic partitioning
02 / LIFESTYLE
Lifestyle
Body shape can suggest a way of moving, but it does not identify a fish or prove its ecology. A streamlined body may help sustained swimming; a compressed shape can make maneuvering around structures easier. Similar forms also appear in unrelated lineages. Compare the head, fins and tail together, and check a regional identification source before assigning a scientific name. An illustration is useful for orientation but is not independent evidence of an observation.
OBSERVATION INDEX
- Follow a life history through connected waters
- Handle salinity and conservation precisely
- Make one careful comparison from the atlas
03 / SPECIES
Representative species
Discover representative species illustrating the ecological diversity, morphologies and adaptations of this group.
giant grenadier
Epinephelidae
Giant grouper
Epinephelus lanceolatus
Myxinidae
Giant hagfish
Eptatretus carlhubbsi
Cirrhitidae
giant hawkfish
Cirrhitus rivulatus
Myctophidae
Giant headlightfish
Diaphus gigas
Labridae
giant hogfish
Bodianus macrognathos
Cottidae
Giant Hookear Sculpin
Artediellus ingens
Opistognathidae
giant jawfish
Opistognathus rhomaleus
Clinidae
giant kelpfish
Heterostichus rostratus
Myctophidae
Giant lampfish
Parvilux ingens
Muraenidae
Giant moray
Gymnothorax javanicus
Gobiidae
Giant Mudskipper
Scartelaos gigas
Mobulidae
Giant oceanic manta ray
Mobula birostris
Gobiidae
Giant pygmygoby
Trimma gigantum
Trachichthyidae
Giant sawbelly
Hoplostethus gigas
Stereolepididae
giant seabass
Stereolepis gigas
Rajidae
Giant skate
Dipturus gigas
Dactyloscopidae
giant stargazer
Dactylagnus mundus
Uranoscopidae
Giant stargazer
Kathetostoma giganteum
Haemulidae
Giant sweetlips
Plectorhinchus obscurus
Cynoglossidae
Giant tonguefish
Symphurus megasomus
Ogcocephalidae
Giant triangular batfish
Malthopsis gigas
Tripterygiidae
Giant triplefin
Blennodon dorsalis
Microdesmidae
Giant Worm-goby
Microdesmus multiradiatus
04 / FIELD NOTES
A closer look
Is this a complete species list?
No. These are available published records with images, not an exhaustive inventory or a measure of abundance.
How can I check a claim?
Follow the scientific name and source, check the scope of the evidence, and send a correction with the exact claim if needed.