Alert pigfish
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Alert Pigfish | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.gif/180px-Alertichthys_blacki_(Alert_Pigfish).gif) Drawing by Dr Tony Ayling
|
||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Alertichthys blacki Moreland, 1960 |
The alert pigfish, Alertichthys blacki, is a pigfish, the only species in the genus Alertichthys, found around New Zealand at depths between 100 and 600 m. It is between 15 and 20 cm in length.
The alert pigfish is an elongate deepwater species with a pointed snout and crest-like dorsal fin, and covered in small scales.
Its colouration is pale grey or white with dark grey markings that extend on to the fins. They feed on crabs, worms, and other invertebrates which it finds by using its long snout to probe into crevices.
[edit] References
- Alertichthys blacki (TSN 643752). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 19 March 2006.
- "Alertichthys blacki". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. January 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
- Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8
