Gempylidae

The Gempylidae are a family of perciform fishes commonly known as snake mackerels or escolars. The family includes about 25 species.

Gempylidae
Oilfish, Ruvettus pretiosus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scombriformes
Suborder: Scombroidei
Family: Gempylidae
T. N. Gill, 1862
Genera[1]

They are elongated fishes with a similar appearance to barracudas, having a long dorsal fin, usually with one or finlets trailing it. The largest species, including the snoek (Thyrsites atun), grow up to 2 m long, and the oilfish (Ruvettus pretiosus) can reach 3 m, though they rarely surpass 150 cm. Like the barracudas, they are predators, with fang-like teeth.[2]

They are deep-water benthopelagic fishes, and several species are important commercial and game fishes.

Timeline
QuaternaryNeogenePaleogeneHolocenePleist.MioceneOligoceneEocenePaleoceneRexeaGempylusEpinnulaQuaternaryNeogenePaleogeneHolocenePleist.MioceneOligoceneEocenePaleocene

See also

References
  1. Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2013). "Gempylidae" in FishBase. April 2013 version.
  2. Johnson, G.D.; Gill, A.C. (1998). Paxton, J.R.; Eschmeyer, W.N. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Fishes. San Diego: Academic Press. p. 190. ISBN 0-12-547665-5.
  3. Danilʹchenko, P. G. (1967). Bony fishes of the Maikop deposits of the Caucasus.
  4. Bannikov, Alexandre F. (2008). "A new genus and species of putative euzaphlegid fish from the Eocene of Bolca in norther Italy (Periformes, Trichiuroidea)." Studi e Ricerche sui giacimenti Terziari di Bolca, XII Miscellanea Paleontologica 9: 99-107.
  5. David, Lore Rose (January 10, 1943). Miocene Fishes of Southern California. Geological Society of America. pp. 104-115.
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