Valenciennellus tripunctulatus

Valenciennellus tripunctulatus, commonly called the constellationfish,[3] is a species of fish in the family Sternoptychidae (hatchetfish).[4][5][6]

Valenciennellus tripunctulatus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Stomiiformes
Family: Sternoptychidae
Genus: Valenciennellus
Species:
V. tripunctulatus
Binomial name
Valenciennellus tripunctulatus
(Esmark, 1871)
Synonyms[2]
  • Maurolicus tripunctulatus Esmark, 1871
  • Valencienellus tripunctulatus Esmark, 1871
  • Valenciennellus stellatus Garman, 1899
  • Valenciennellus tripunctatus Esmark, 1871

Description

Valenciennellus tripunctulatus is small, growing no longer than 3.1 cm (1.2 in).[7] It darkens its body at night by pigment dispersion. It is silvery-white in colour with several black spots; the name tripunctulatus ("three-spotted") refers to the larger spots on their ventral surface, although there are often more than three of these.[8]

Habitat

Valenciennellus tripunctulatus lives all the world's non-polar oceans. It is bathypelagic and non-migratory, living at depths of 100–1,000 m (330–3,280 ft).[7][9]

Behaviour

Valenciennellus tripunctulatus is a selective daytime feeder on copepods (mainly Pleuromamma) and ostracods (such as Conchoecia).[10]

It breeds year-round, with egg batches about 100–360 eggs per ovary pair, the number increasing with animal size.[7] It does not guard its eggs.[11]

References
  1. "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species".
  2. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Valenciennellus tripunctulatus (Esmark, 1871)". www.marinespecies.org.
  3. "Valenciennellus tripunctulatus". fishesofaustralia.net.au.
  4. "Research Report". U.S. Government Printing Office. June 22, 1946 – via Google Books.
  5. "Fishery Bulletin". National Marine Fisheries Service. June 22, 1989 – via Google Books.
  6. Boehlert, George W. (June 22, 1992). "Distribution of Ichthyoplankton Around Southeast Hancock Seamount, Central North Pacific, in Summer 1984 and Winter 1985: Data Report" – via Google Books.
  7. "Valenciennellus tripunctulatus, Constellationfish". www.fishbase.se.
  8. Bulletin of the United States National Museum
  9. Bigelow, Henry B.; Cohen, Daniel M.; Dick, Myvanwy M.; Jr, Robert H. Gibbs; Grey, Marion; Jr, James E. Morrow; Schultz, Leonard P.; Walters, Vladimir (October 23, 2018). Soft-rayed Bony Fishes: Orders Isospondyli and Giganturoidei: Part 4. Yale University Press. ISBN 9781933789149 – via Google Books.
  10. Andersen, Neil R.; Zahuranec, Bernard J. (June 22, 1977). Oceanic Sound Scattering Prediction. Springer. ISBN 9780306355059 – via Google Books.
  11. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Valenciennellus tripunctulatus (Esmark, 1871)". www.marinespecies.org.
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