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Myxine affinis

(Hagfish, Patagonian Hagfish, Patagonian Hagfish)

Overview

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Family : Hagfishes ;

Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Danish:

Patagonisk SlimÃ¥l, Patagonisk Slimål

Common Names in English:

Hagfish, Patagonian Hagfish

Common Names in Spanish:

Babosa

Description

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Family Myxinidae

Marine , temperate zones of the world, all oceans except the Red Sea , Arctic , and Southern oceans; only deep water in tropical areas. Jaws absent, no bones. Body naked, eel-like. 1-16 pairs of external gill openings. No paired fins , no dorsal fin. Part of caudal fin extends onto dorsal and ventral surfaces. Degenerate eyes. Laterally biting mouth bearing barbels . Teeth only on tongue plus one on 'palate'. Mucous pores in 2 ventrolateral lines , each line with about 70-200 glands containing mucous cells and thread cells . Ovaries and testes in same individual but functionally non-hermaphroditic. Up to 30 large yolky eggs . No metamorphosis. Important predators (often scavengers ) on invertebrates and others, e.g. , netted fishes and discard . One of the most abundant groups of demersal fishes in many areas. Prey item for marine mammals and large predatory invertebrates. Only vertebrates with body fluids iso-osmotic with seawater. About 100 cm max length. Used as food in Japan and South Korea. Their hides are processed into 'eel skin' in Korea. myx- (gr.) = slime.The family Myxinidae belongs to the Class Myxini (hagfishes ) and the Order Myxiniformes. It contains 6 genera and 67 species. It may be found in Marine environments and is primarily Marine. Members of this family are not used in the aquarium trade. Reproductively, most members of this family are nonguarders. The main mode of swimming of adult fish in this family is anguilliform . Etymology of this family name : Greek, myxinos, -ou = a kind of viscose skin

Habitat

Biome: Saltwater . Demersal .

Taxonomy

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Ambiguous Synonyms

  1. Muraenoblenna olivacea Lacepède, 1803

Unambiguous Synonyms

  1. Bagrus wolffii Bleeker, 1851
  2. Hypselobagrus wolffii (Bleeker, 1851)
  3. Macrones wolffii (Bleeker, 1851)
  4. Mystus wolffi (Bleeker, 1851)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: –

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Myxine

There are approximately 29 species in this genus:

M. affinis (Hagfish) · M. australis · M. capensis (Cape Hagfish) · M. circifrons (Whiteface Hagfish) · M. debueni · M. dorsum · M. fernholmi · M. fernholmi spini · M. formosana · M. garmani · M. glutinosa (Atlantic Hagfish) · M. glutinosa australis · M. glutinosa limosa · M. glutinosa septentrionalis · M. hubbsi · M. hubbsoides · M. ios (White-Headed Hagfish) · M. jespersenae · M. knappi · M. kuoi · M. limosa · M. mccoskeri · M. mcmillanae (Caribbean Hagfish) · M. olivacea · M. paucidens · M. pequenoi · M. polytrema · M. robinsorum · M. sotoi

Bibliography

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More Info

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 01, 2008:

Identifiers

Last Revised: 2008-09-16