Bigspine Spookfish, Harriotta raleighana Goode & Bean 1895

Other Names: Longnose Spookfish, Bentnose Rabbitfish, Longnose Chimaera, Longnosed Chimaera, Long-nosed Chimaera, Narrownose Chimaera, Pacific Longnose Chimaera, Ratfish, Spookfish

A Bigspine Spookfish, Harriotta raleighana, in the Gulf of Mexico, 22 April 2012. Source: NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program, Gulf of Mexico 2012 Expedition. License: CC by Attribution

Summary:

A long-nosed chimaera with a very long flattened snout that may be upturned, a long dorsal-fin spine, and no fleshy tubercles on the upper margin of the caudal fin. The Bigspine Spookfish is uniformly chocolate brown becoming paler below, with paler fins and a pale green iris.
Video of a Bigspine Spookfish in the abyss of the South Atlantic Ocean, in the Angolan maritime zone, depth 1470 m.

Extraordinary video of a Longspine Spookfish, swimming 10 metres above the seafloor in Hydrographer Canyon during Dive 05, July 13, of the Okeanos Explorer Northeast U.S. Canyons Expedition 2013. Video courtesy of NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2018, Harriotta raleighana in Fishes of Australia, accessed 22 Sep 2023, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/3290

Bigspine Spookfish, Harriotta raleighana Goode & Bean 1895

More Info

Distribution	Recorded off southern Australia from off Broken Bay, New South Wales, to off Geraldton, Western Australia. Elsewhere, the species is circumglobal, being absent from the tropics except in the western Indian Ocean.
Features	Body elongate, maximum depth (approx. 13% body length to rear end of caudal fin) about level with dorsal fin spines, tapering to long filamentous tail that reaches beyond caudal fin; sides compressed. Head large (approx. 31% body length to rear end of caudal fin); snout very long, dorsoventrally flattened and pointed; eyes large; spiracles absent; mouth small, inferior; tooth plates beak-like with cutting edge, surfaces with ridges and rounded knobs; single small gill opening on each side of head, restricted to lower part of body in front of pectoral-fin bases. Scales only present on male claspers and tenaculum; lateral line branching over head, looping slightly under dorsal spine then extending back along sides in a nearly straight line; oral and jugular lateral sensory canals meeting orbital canal jointly or separately. Double row of small strong spines beneath skin dorsally on head behind interorbital space, in front of first dorsal fin, and between second dorsal fin and caudal fin. Two dorsal fins, first with short base, connected with second dorsal by low fold of skin; second dorsal with long base, low, extending from in advance of pelvic fins to above origin of lower caudal fin, well short of upper caudal fin; first dorsal with very strong slightly curved spine reaching at least to tip of fin, spine with posterior groove and serrated hind edges; anal fin absent, but caudal peduncle with shallow fold of skin continuous with and extending forward from lower caudal fin; upper caudal fin commencing behind origin of lower caudal, less deep and shorter than lower, the two symmetrical posteriorly. Pectoral fins very large (approx. 26% body length to rear end of caudal fin), rounded in young, sub-falcate in older individuals, extending back to just behind ventral-fin bases. Pelvic fins originating at or just behind middle of body excluding filament, rounded posteriorly; claspers of male simple, unbranched
Size	Recorded to reach a total length of 120 cm; females grow to a larger size than males.
Feeding	Reportedly feeds mostly on shellfish and crustaceans.
Biology	Very little is known of the biology of this species. Females grow larger than males; size at maturity for males is ~25−30 cm body length (BDL) and for females, it is ~30 cm BDL; size at birth is ~10−13 cm precaudal length. Females lay small dark brown elongate egg capsules with pale amber ribbed flanges along each side - about 16.5 cm in length. The young reportedly hatch in summer.
Fisheries	Taken occasionally as bycatch in deepwater trawl fisheries.
Species Citation	Harriotta raleighana Goode & Bean, 1895, Proc. U. S. Natl Mus. 17(1014): 472, pl. 19. Type locality: north-west Atlantic, USA.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2018
Resources	Australian Faunal Directory

Bigspine Spookfish, Harriotta raleighana Goode & Bean 1895

References

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Goode, G.B. & Bean, T.H. 1895. Scientific results of explorations by the U.S. Fish Commission Steamer Albatross. No. 30. On Harriotta, a new type of chimaeroid fish from the deeper waters of the northwestern Atlantic. Proceedings of the United States National Museum 17(1014): 471-473 pl. 19.

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