Slender sunfish (Ranzania laevis)

Scientific name: Ranzania laevis Pennant, 1776

The Slender sunfish (Ranzania laevis) is a marine fish of the family Molidae.

Biology

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 18; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 20. Caudal fin present in postlarvae but resorbed during metamorphosis and replaced by a clavus. Body elongated, Mouth slit vertical.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name: Ranzania laevis
Family: Molidae (Molas or Ocean Sunfishes)
Order: Tetraodontiformes (Puffers and Filefishes)
Class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length: 100.0
Depth range: 1–140 m (3–459 ft)
Environment: Marine; pelagic-oceanic; depth range 1 - 140 m
Climate: Subtropical
Distribution: Cosmopolitan. Western Atlantic: Florida (USA), Martinique, Venezuela, and Brazil. Eastern Atlantic: Madeira to Scandinavia; Dakar, Senegambie, and Sierra Leone; South Africa. Eastern Pacific: central California, USA to Chile; rare north of Mexico. Indian Ocean: Madagascar, Mauritius, Reunion, Iran, Australia (49596). West Pacific: Japan, China, Taiwan, New Zealand.
Conservation status (IUCN): Not Evaluated
Threat to humans: Harmless
Resilience: Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)

Sources

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

Last updated 27 September 2026