Great northern tilefish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps)

Scientific name: Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps Goode & Bean, 1879

The Great northern tilefish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps) is a marine fish of the family Malacanthidae. In the aquarium it needs water at 9–14°C (48–57°F).

Great northern tilefish care at a glance

Temperature: 9–14°C (48–57°F)

Biology

Most common around 200 m, usually over mud or sand bottom and occasionally over rough bottom; prefers temperature of 8-17?C. Feeds mainly on shrimp and crabs, but also takes fish, squid, bivalves and holothurians. Sensitive to cold water, a mass die-off occurred in 1882, after which the species was rare for decades, presumably due to unusually cold water. Marketed fresh or frozen; can be steamed, pan-fried, broiled, microwaved and baked.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name: Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps
Family: Malacanthidae (Tilefishes)
Order: Perciformes (Perch-like fish)
Class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length: 125
Common length: 90.0
Depth range: 80–540 m (262–1772 ft)
Environment: Marine; demersal; depth range 80 - 540 m
Climate: Subtropical
Distribution: Western Atlantic: Nova Scotia, Canada to southern Florida, USA and Gulf of Mexico. Probably throughout the northern coast of South America; and the Caribbean (Dooley, pers. comm.).
Conservation status (IUCN): Not Evaluated
Threat to humans: Harmless
Uses: Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes
Resilience: Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.09-0.13; tm=5; tmax=35; Fec=195,000)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Last updated 27 September 2026