Kingdom Animalia Order Perciformes Genus Anarhichas Higher classification Anarhichas | Phylum Chordata Family Anarhichadidae Scientific name Anarhichas orientalis Rank Species | |
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Similar Northern wolffish, Anarhichas, Anarhichadidae, Atlantic wolffish, Spotted wolffish | ||
bering wolffish which is conscious of a camera after an attack
The Bering wolffish (Anarhichas orientalis) is a marine fish in the family Anarhichadidae, the "wolffish".
Contents
Fisherman caught largest 2metre bering wolffish ever off the coast of japan near fukushima plant
Description
The Bering wolffish has an elongate and laterally compressed body, with a thin caudal peduncle. It has a steep snout, and, like other wolffish, has long, canine teeth that protrude out past the tips of the jaws.
It can grow to 112 cm and 15 kg in weight, is dark brown in colour and lacks any distinct markings other than some slight blotching or paleish marbling. The head of juveniles may have multiple dark spots and four to five dark coloured longitudinal stripes on the upper body.
The head length is approximately 19 to 21 percent of the total body length.
This species differs from the five other species in the genus in having at least 53 anal rays, 81 to 86 dorsal fin spines, and more rounded, deeper caudal fins.
Distribution
The Bering wolffish species has an inconsistent distribution. It is found from the Northeastern Pacific Ocean from Hokkaido to the Sea of Okhotsk, to Alaska. Although insufficiently documented, it is also known to occur across the Northwestern Pacific, the Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean.
Habitat
The Bering wolffish lives on rocky, gravel and sandy substrates, and algae-encrusted bottoms in shallow, inshore locations.
Behaviour
Bering wolffishes are known to practice nesting habits. They produce very big eggs which hatch into larvae remaining in the pelagic zone.
Diet
Benthic invertebrates such as crabs and molluscs.
