bathlobi.blogg.se - Hungry wolf eel

Both are mottled with dark spots surrounded by pale rings, and the degree of mottling tends to increase with size.

Despite not being a true eel, the wolf-eel's common name succinctly sums up its long and narrow body, rather vicious-looking snaggly teeth, and impressive size (it can reach 2.5 m long!) While both male and female have large heads tapering into elongated bodies with long anal and dorsal fins, they are readily differentiated as the female is darker and brownish in colour, while the male is whitish-grey male and has a bumpier, puffier head with a bulging forehead and large jaws. Its powerful jaws and teeth make this possible.The wolf-eel is a distinctive fish unrelated to other 'true' eels it instead belongs to the wolffish family ( Anarhichadidae). Instead, it has a diet consisting almost of crustaceans, echinoderms, and molluscs. Rather interestingly, it does not feed on fish. As a result, most individuals rarely leave their particular home. There, the Atlantic Wolffish typically lives in the various naturally occurring caves and rocky crevices.įurthermore, it remains a highly stationary species. Yet, in its specific area of habitation, this depth constitutes the ocean floor.

Within that area, this variety of fish typically lives at fairly shallow depths ranging from 66 -1,640 ft (20 – 500 m).

Its range extends from Iceland in the north, to as far south as Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in the United States. However, markedly smaller populations of the animal also inhabit the Arctic Ocean. Source: Photo: Kamil Porembiński CCL: Atlantic Wolffish Distribution, Habitat, and Ecologyįirstly, as its name suggest, the Atlantic Wolffish inhabits a broad portion of the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to sheer numbers, the teeth of the Atlantic Wolffish also develops four to six fang-like teeth. Yet, its best known features remains the structure of its teeth. These colors range from a drab olive-green, to a purplish-brown, and bluish-gray. The physical appearance also varies between individuals, at least in terms of coloring. In addition, unlike many creatures, this fascinating animal does not display any known form of sexual dimorphism. However, the largest known specimen attained a total length of about 5 ft (1.5 m), and weighed roughly 40 lb (18 kg). This primarily occurs due to various factors, such as local conditions, food supply, etc. Perhaps most notably, individuals of the Atlantic Wolffish attain widely varying sizes. Porembiński Citron CC License: Atlantic Wolffish Physical Drescription Lumpfish Pinecone Fish Stonefish Source: Image Credit: K. However, for the moment, the IUCN does not yet show it on the Red List of Threatened Species. Not surprisingly, this sharp decline occurred mainly due to the effects of overfishing, in addition to bycatch.

Quite sadly, the population of the Atlantic Wolffish numbers of the species overall began plummeting dramatically during the 1950’s.

This literally contains a natural form of antifreeze, to protect it against the extreme cold of its environment. That’s because this otherwise unassuming seeming species of fish has a very special blood.

However, it remains best known among researchers for an incredible physiological trait that developed during its evolution.

These many alternate names it goes by include such terms as seawolf, ocean catfish, the wolf eel, along with several others. But, the sincerely fascinating creature also goes by numerous other common names.

First of all, the remarkable Atlantic Wolffish constitutes the largest known member of the wolffish family.

Source: Photo Credit: Kamil Porembiński CC License: Atlantic Wolffish Facts