Whitetail sculpin (Malacocottus aleuticus)

Scientific name: Malacocottus aleuticus Smith, 1904

Whitetail sculpin (Malacocottus aleuticus)

The Whitetail sculpin (Malacocottus aleuticus) is a marine fish of the family Psychrolutidae.

Biology

Dorsal spines: 7 - 10; Dorsal soft rays: 13-15; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 10 - 13; Vertebrae: 31 - 32. Body minutely speckled with black; broad black bands from soft dorsal fin to anal fin and behind pectoral axil; caudal peduncle and fin white. Pelvic fins very small; caudal fin rounded.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Malacocottus aleuticus
Family
Psychrolutidae (Fatheads)
Order
Scorpaeniformes (Scorpionfishes and Flatheads)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
9.8
Depth range
300–1000 m (984–3281 ft)
Environment
Marine; benthopelagic; depth range 300 - 1000 m, usually 300 - 600 m
Climate
Deep-water
Distribution
North Pacific: off southeastern Kamchatka and Sea of Okhotsk off southwest coast of Kamchatka, eastern Sakhalin Island, and Hokkaido, Japan. Also from the Bering Sea north of Rat Islands and Prince William Sound, Alaska.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)

Sources

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

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