Ahliesaurus berryi Bertelsen, Krefft & Marshall, 1976
photo by Dolgov, A.

Family:  Notosudidae (Waryfishes)
Max. size:  26.9 cm SL (male/unsexed)
Environment:  bathypelagic; marine; depth range 0 - 2000 m
Distribution:  Tropical and subtropical Atlantic, southwestern Indian and central South Pacific oceans.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10-11; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 19-21. Olive brown in color, edges of scale pockets blackish; 2 black bands formed by peritoneum showing through body wall; blackish triangular spot on caudal base (Ref. 6602).
Biology:  Mesopelagic to bathypelagic (Ref. 6602). Sometimes taken at depths greater than 500 m (Ref. 6602). Feeds on smaller plankton, mainly copepods. Hermaphrodite, spawning probably occurs in the North Atlantic in a belt stretching across the ocean in subtropical latitudes. Specimens approaching sexual maturity lose their teeth and gillrakers completely (Ref. 6689) suggesting semelparity (RF).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 15 May 2013 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


Source and more info: www.fishbase.org. For personal, classroom, and other internal use only. Not for publication.