Phosichthyidae

Taxobox
name = Lightfishes

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image_width = 240px
image_caption = "Ichthyococcus ovatus"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Stomiiformes
familia = Phosichthyidae
subdivision_ranks = Genera
subdivision = "Ichthyococcus" "Phosichthys" "Pollichthys" "Polymetme" "Vinciguerria" "Woodsia" "Yarrella" See text for species.

Lightfishes are small stomiiform fishes in the family Phosichthyidae [FishBase family | family = Phosichthyidae | month = January | year = 2006] [ITIS | ID = 622313 | taxon = Phosichthyidae | date = 29 March | year = 2006] (spelled Photichthyidae in Nelson [cite book | author = Joseph S. Nelson | title = Fishes of the World, 3rd edition | year = 1994 | publisher = John Wiley & Sons | id = ISBN 0-471-54713-1] ).

They are very small fishes found in oceans throughout the world: most species grow no longer than 10 cm, while those in the genus "Vinciguerria" only reach 4 cm or so.

They make up for their small size with abundant numbers: "Vinciguerria" is thought — with the possible exception of "Cyclothone" — to be the most abundant genus of vertebrates. Deep-sea trawls of the Humboldt Current in the southeast Pacific have found that lightfishes make up 85% by mass of mesopelagic fishes, with "Vinciguerria lucetia" by far the most numerous species. [cite web | title = Deep-sea fish diversity and ecology in the benthic boundary layer | author = R. Cornejo, R. Koppelmann & T. Sutton | url = http://www.agu.org/meetings/os06/os06-sessions/os06_OS45Q.html]

They are bioluminescent fishes, possessing rows of photophores along their sides, with which they hunt planktonic invertebrates, especially krill.

pecies

There are 24 species in seven genera:
* Genus "Ichthyococcus"
** "Ichthyococcus australis" Mukhacheva, 1980.
** Slim lightfish, "Ichthyococcus elongatus" Imai, 1941.
** "Ichthyococcus intermedius" Mukhacheva, 1980.
** Bulldog lightfish, "Ichthyococcus irregularis" Rechnitzer & Böhlke, 1958.
** "Ichthyococcus ovatus" (Cocco, 1838).
** "Ichthyococcus parini" Mukhacheva, 1980.
** "Ichthyococcus polli" Blache, 1963.
* Genus "Phosichthys"
** "Phosichthys argenteus" Hutton, 1872.
* Genus "Pollichthys"
** Stareye lightfish, "Pollichthys mauli" (Poll, 1953).
* Genus "Polymetme"
** "Polymetme andriashevi" Parin & Borodulina, 1990.
** "Polymetme corythaeola" (Alcock, 1898).
** "Polymetme elongata" (Imai, 1941).
** "Polymetme illustris" McCulloch, 1926.
** "Polymetme surugaensis" (Matsubara, 1943).
** "Polymetme thaeocoryla" Parin & Borodulina, 1990.
* Genus "Vinciguerria"
** "Vinciguerria attenuata" (Cocco, 1838).
** Panama lightfish, "Vinciguerria lucetia" (Garman, 1899).
** "Vinciguerria mabahiss" Johnson & Feltes, 1984.
** Oceanic lightfish, "Vinciguerria nimbaria" (Jordan & Williams, 1895).
** Power's deep-water bristle-mouth fish, "Vinciguerria poweriae" (Cocco, 1838).
* Genus "Woodsia"
** "Woodsia meyerwaardeni" Krefft, 1973.
** Bigeye lightfish, "Woodsia nonsuchae" (Beebe, 1932).
* Genus "Yarrella"
** "Yarrella argenteola" (Garman, 1899).
** "Yarrella blackfordi" Goode & Bean, 1896.

References