The smallmouth spiny eel (''Polyacanthonotus rissoanus''), also called the shortspine tapirfish, is a species of
deep-sea spiny eel.
Description
The smallmouth spiny eel is silver or brown in colour, with a maximum length of . It has 26–36 dorsal
soft rays. It looks similar to ''
Polyacanthonotus africanus
''Polyacanthonotus'' is a genus of spiny eels, with these currently recognized species:
* '' Polyacanthonotus africanus'' ( Gilchrist & von Bonde, 1924)
* '' Polyacanthonotus challengeri'' ( Vaillant, 1888) (longnose tapirfish)
* '' Polyacanth ...
'' but its
lateral line
The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelial ...
is lighter and less distinct. It has a small mouth and a short preoral snout. Mature males are distinguished by their black nostrils.
Habitat
The smallmouth spiny eel lives in the Arctic waters off of Canada and in the North Atlantic Ocean off of Iceland, Ireland and Great Britain; it has also been observed in the waters off South Africa and in the Tasman Sea. It is a benthic and bathydemersal species, living at depths of .
Behaviour
''Polyacanthonotus rissoanus'' feeds on coelenterates, worms and crustaceans.
References
Notacanthidae
Fish described in 1857
Taxa named by Filippo De Filippi
Taxa named by Jean Baptiste Vérany
{{Notacanthiformes-stub