Description

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 24 - 26; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 18 - 21. Tip of pelvic fin not reaching origin of anal fin (Ref. 13608).

Common Names

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Teleostei

Order: Trachichthyiformes

Family: Diretmidae

Genus: Diretmoides

Species: Diretmoides pauciradiatus (Woods, 1973)

Climate Zone

Location

• Eastern Atlantic: Guinea Bissau to Angola (Ref. 6536). Western Atlantic: eastern Florida, Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and northern Brazil. Indian Ocean: Mozambique, Madagascar, and Western Australia. Pacific: Indonesia, South China Sea, and Kyushu-Palau Ridge (Moore, pers. comm.).

Biology

Mesopelagic. Young near the surface while aged adults often descend below 1,000 m depth (Ref. 2683). Largest adults may be benthopelagic (Ref. 9851). Plankton-eaters like the other members of the family (Ref. 6744). Breed all year round (Ref. 6744). Minimum depth range taken from Ref. 27000.

Habitat

bathypelagic

Conservation Status

Least Concern

Threat to Humans

Harmless