The blackfin waryfish (''Scopelosaurus lepidus'') is a species of fish in the family

Notosudidae Waryfishes are deep-sea aulopiform fishes in the small family Notosudidae. They are thought to have a circumglobal distribution in subarctic to subantarctic waters. The family name Notosudidae derives from the Greek ''noton'' (back) and Latin ''s ...

(waryfish).

Description

The blackfin waryfish is pinkish black in colour, with the pectoral fins having a large black patch covering their basal two-thirds and a white distal stripe. It has a maximum length of and 59 or 60 vertebrae.

Habitat

The blackfin waryfish lives in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is benthopelagic and oceanodromous, living at depths of .

Behaviour

The young feeds on

copepod Copepods (; meaning "oar-feet") are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat (ecology), habitat. Some species are planktonic (inhabiting sea waters), some are benthos, benthic (living on the ocean floor) ...

s while the adults feed on

euphausiid Krill are small crustaceans of the order Euphausiacea, and are found in all the world's oceans. The name "krill" comes from the Norwegian word ', meaning "small fry of fish", which is also often attributed to species of fish. Krill are consi ...

hyperiid The Hyperiidea are a suborder of amphipods, small aquatic crustaceans. Unlike the other suborders of Amphipoda, hyperiids are exclusively marine and do not occur in fresh water. Hyperiids are distinguished by their large eyes and planktonic habi ...

s and mesopelagic fish. Spawning occurs in midwater far offshore, including in the

Sargasso Sea The Sargasso Sea () is a region of the Atlantic Ocean bounded by four currents forming an ocean gyre. Unlike all other regions called seas, it has no land boundaries. It is distinguished from other parts of the Atlantic Ocean by its charac ...

. It is eaten by '' Sebastes'' (ocean perch).

References

Notosudidae Fish described in 1955 Taxa named by Gerard Krefft Taxa named by Günther Maul {{Rayfinned-fish-stub