False boarfish

False boarfish
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Zeiformes
Family:	Oreosomatidae
Genus:	Neocyttus
Species:	N. helgae
Binomial name
Neocyttus helgae (Holt & Byrne, 1908)
Synonyms[2][3]
Cyttosoma helgae Holt & Byrne, 1908 Crassispinus granulosus Maul, 1948

The false boarfish (Neocyttus helgae) is a species of fish in the family Oreosomatidae (oreos).[4][5]

Description

The false boarfish is dark grey in colour, with a maximum length of 30.5 cm (12.0 in). It has 6–7 dorsal spines, 34–35 dorsal soft rays, 3–4 anal spines and 31–32 anal soft rays. It is diamond-shaped, with a protruding small mouth and large spiny rays present at the anterior edges of the fins.[6][7]

Habitat

The false boarfish on a Faroese stamp; it is called by its Faroese name rútar kongur ("king of diamonds").[8]

Neocyttus helgae is bathypelagic, living at depths of 915–1,829 m (3,002–6,001 ft) in the North Atlantic Ocean,[9] being found off Madeira and Ireland and in the Cantabrian Sea.[10][11][12]

Behaviour

The false boarfish feeds off zooplankton and raises its dorsal spine as a territorial display.[9] It feeds near to Paragorgia coral.[13]

References

1. Smith-Vaniz, W.F.; Carpenter, K.E.; de Morais, L.; Harold, A.; Knudsen, S. (2015). "Neocyttus helgae (Europe assessment)". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2015: e.T18257722A45792703. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
2. WoRMS. "Neocyttus helgae (Holt & Byrne, 1908)". World Register of Marine Species.
3. Richards, William J. (August 8, 2005). Early Stages of Atlantic Fishes: An Identification Guide for the Western Central North Atlantic, Two Volume Set. CRC Press. ISBN 9780203500217 – via Google Books.
4. Baker, Maria; Ramirez-Llodra, Eva; Tyler, Paul (August 27, 2020). Natural Capital and Exploitation of the Deep Ocean. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-884165-4 – via Google Books.
5. Priede, Imants G. (August 10, 2017). Deep-Sea Fishes: Biology, Diversity, Ecology and Fisheries. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781316033456 – via Google Books.
6. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Neocyttus helgae (Holt & Byrne, 1908) | False boarfish". FishBase.
7. "Neocyttus helgae (Holt & Byrne, 1908)". Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
8. Føroysk-Ensk ordabók: with Faroese folk-lore and proverbs : and a section by W.B. Lockwood on Faroese pronunciation. Nám. July 7, 1985. ISBN 9780907715221 – via Google Books.
9. Moore, Jon A.; Auster, Peter J.; Calini, Danielle; Heinonen, Kari; Barber, Kimberly; Hecker, Barbara (2008). "False Boarfish Neocyttus helgae in the Western North Atlantic". Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History. 49: 31–41. doi:10.3374/0079-032X(2008)49[31:FBNHIT]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 131497848.
10. "Cybium". Muséum national d'histoire naturelle, Laboratoire d'ichtyologie générale et appliquée. July 7, 2008 – via Google Books.
11. "Marine Species Identification Portal : False boarfish - Neocyttus helgae". species-identification.org.
12. Moore, Jon A.; Auster, Peter J.; Calini, Danielle; Heinonen, Kari; Barber, Kimberly; Hecker, Barbara (2008). "False Boarfish Neocyttus helgae in the Western North Atlantic". Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History. 49: 31. doi:10.3374/0079-032X(2008)49[31:FBNHIT]2.0.CO;2. ISSN 0079-032X. S2CID 131497848.
13. Freiwald, André; Roberts, J. Murray (January 17, 2006). Cold-Water Corals and Ecosystems. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9783540276739 – via Google Books.