Psilodraco is a monotypic genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Bathydraconidae, the Antarctic dragonfishes, its only species is Psilodraco breviceps. These fishes are native to the Southern Ocean.
| Psilodraco | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Bathydraconidae |
| Genus: | Psilodraco Norman, 1937 |
| Species: | P. breviceps
|
| Binomial name | |
| Psilodraco breviceps Norman, 1937
| |
Taxonomy edit
Psilodraco was first described as a genus in 1937 by the British ichthyologist John Roxborough Norman when he was describing the only species in this monotypic genus Psilodraco breviceps,[1] the type of which had been collected by the Discovery Expedition off South Georgia.[2] The genus name compounds psilos which means "naked", a reference Norman did not explain but this species lacks any obvious scales, and draco meaning "dragon", a common suffix used in name notothenioids, while the specific name breviceps means "short head", this species having a shorter snout than Gymnodraco acuticeps.[3]
Description edit
Psilodraco has a naked, compressed body, the only scales being the imperforated scales that make up the five lateral lines. There is a strong ridge on the operculum which ends in a short, flattened spine and a flattened, hooked process. The snout is short, slightly concave and pointed. The mouth has a band of canine like teeth, made up of multiple series, the outermost series are enlarged with the most enlarged behind the symphysis on the upper jaw. There are 28-30 soft rays in the dorsal fin and 27-29 in the anal fin. In alcohol this fish is brown, covered in darker spots, paler on the underside and on the fins.[4] This species attains a maximum standard length of 20 cm (7.9 in).[5]
Distribution and habitat edit
Psilodraco is found in the Southern Ocean where it is endemism to the insular shelf of South Georgia. This is a demersal species which is found at depths of60 to 345 m (197 to 1,132 ft), typically between 248 and 345 m (814 and 1,132 ft).[5]
Biology edit
Psilodraco spawns in the late autumn and early winter and the eggs probably hatch during the winter. A sampled female had ovaries which contained 1,340 eggs[4] It is a synchronous spawner.[5]
References edit
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Psilodraco". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Bathydraconidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
- ^ Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (12 April 2021). "Order Perciformes: Suborder Notothenoididei: Families Bovichtidae, Pseaudaphritidae, Elegopinidae, Nototheniidae, Harpagiferidae, Artedidraconidae, Bathydraconidae, Channichthyidae and Percophidae". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
- ^ a b O. Gon (1990). "Bathydraconidae Dragonfishes". In O. Gon and P.C. Heemstra (eds.). Fishes of the Southern Ocean. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity. ISBN 9780868102115.
- ^ a b c Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2021). "Psilodraco breviceps" in FishBase. June 2021 version.