''Sebastes viviparus'', the Norway redfish, small redfish, lesser redfish, ocean perch or rosefish, is a
species of marine
ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily
Sebastinae, the rockfishes, part of the
family Scorpaenidae
The Scorpaenidae (also known as scorpionfish) are a family of mostly marine fish that includes many of the world's most venomous species. As their name suggests, scorpionfish have a type of "sting" in the form of sharp spines coated with venom ...
. It is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean.
Taxonomy
''Sebastes viviparus'' was first formally
described in 1845 by the Danish
zoologist Henrik Nikolai Krøyer, although he had described it in 1844 as a
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
of ''Sebastes marinus'' but this taxon is thought to be a synonym of ''
Serranus scriba'', with the
type locality
Type locality may refer to:
* Type locality (biology)
* Type locality (geology)
See also
* Local (disambiguation)
* Locality (disambiguation)
{{disambiguation ...
given as Norway.
It is classified within the
subgenus
In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.
In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...
''Sebastes''. The
specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
''viviparus'' means "live bearing".
Description
''Sebastes viviparus'' is a relatively small species of rockfish
with a maximum recorded
total length of , although is more typical, and a maximum published weight of .
[ The dorsal fin has 14-16 spines and 12–15, normally mostly 13–14, soft rays and the ]anal fin
Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...
with 3 spines and 6-8 soft rays.[
]
Distribution and habitat
''Sebastes viviparus'' is found in the northeast Atlantic. It occurs along the Norwegian coast from the Kattegat north to Tanafjord
The Tanafjord or Tanafjorden ( sme, Deanuvuotna) is a large fjord in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located in the municipalities of Tana, Gamvik, and Berlevåg. Its orientation is mainly north–south, reaching approximately from the sm ...
in Finnmark. It is rare off Bear Island. It is also found around the Great Britain and Ireland from the Shetland Island southwards but it is rare in the English Channel. It has been recorded from Rockall Bank, it is common around the Faroes and Iceland but it is erratic in its occurrences off East Greenland.[ It is a ]demersal fish
Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They occ ...
which is found at depths of .[ It typically occurs on rocky substartes close to shore.][
]
Biology
''Sebastes viviparus'' is found in shoals that move closer to the coast during the summer. Their diet is made up of various small crustaceans and young fishes. They are ovoviviparous, like all rockfishes.[
]
Fisheries
''Sebastes viviparus'' is generally considered too small to be a target for commercial fisheries, although there is a small fishery in Iceland. It is vulnerable to overfishing due to the low growth rate of population.[
]
References
{{Authority control
viviparus