Family : Trachichthyidae (Slimeheads)
Order : Beryciformes  (sawbellies)
Class : Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Fishbase Name : Mediterranean slimehead
Fish Name : Hoplostethus mediterraneus mediterraneus
Max size : 42.0 cm SL (male/unsexed; Ref. 3397); max. reported age: 11 years
Environment : benthopelagic ; depth range 100 - 1175 m
Climate : subtropical
Global Importance : fisheries: of no interest
Resilience: Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.11; tmax=11)Distribution : Generally cosmopolitan. Eastern Atlantic: Ireland to Senegal, Canary Islands, and the Gulf of Guinea, including the Mediterranean; also Namibia and South Africa (Ref. 4181). Reported from Iceland (Ref. 12462). Western Indian Ocean: Red Sea (Ref. 9942) and South Africa (Ref. 4181). Western Atlantic: Georges Bank to northern Gulf of Mexico, Great Antilles, and Venezuela to southern Brazil (Moore, pers. comm.).
Diagnosis : Dorsal spines (total): 6-7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12-14; Anal spines: 3-3; Anal soft rays: 10-10. Body dusky pink above, silvery below; paired fins pale (Ref. 4181). Body deep, oval. Scales deciduous, spinules minute, margins usually entire (Ref. 37108).
Biology : Ref. 3583 and 3474 state the species is pelagic but Ref. 2683 indicates the species is demersal. Found over muddy bottom (Ref. 26999)
Threatened : Dangerous:  
Dangerous : harmless
Coordinator : Moore, Jon A.
Main Ref : Maul, G.E.. 1990. (Ref. 3583)

India country information
Common Names : [ No common name ]
Status : native
Salinity : marine
Uses : no uses