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Regalecidae

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Regalecidae

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Also known as oarfish

The oarfish is a large and extremely long pelagic lampriform fish belonging to the small family Regalecidae. Found in areas spanning from temperate ocean zones to tropical ones, yet rarely seen by humans, the oarfish family contains three species in two genera. One of these, the giant oarfish (Regalecus glesne), is the longest bony fish alive, growing up to about in length.

OverviewAI-generated

Regalecidae is a family of marine animals within the order Lampriformes. It belongs to the class Teleostei, phylum Chordata, and kingdom Animalia. The family is governed by the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature and is commonly known as oarfishes, Riemvissen, or Sildekonge. Its taxonomic status is accepted, with the authority cited as Gill, 1884.

Records for this family include 787 occurrences. Specific data from iDigBio lists four records held by institutions CSIRO and WAM, all located in Australia. The taxon is referenced by 54 other encyclopedia articles.

Synthesized by Vinony from 30 facts across 6 sources: Wikidata, GBIF, Gbif Occ, WoRMS, iDigBio, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Species

oarfishes

FAMILY

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumChordata
  3. ClassTeleostei
  4. OrderLampriformes
  5. FamilyRegalecidae
Habitatmarine
Observations recorded787

Riemenfische (Regalecidae) sind große, schlangenförmige pelagische Knochenfische. Obwohl sie in allen tropischen und gemäßigten Ozeanen vorkommen, werden sie nur selten gesichtet. Die Familie der Riemenfische umfasst drei bekannte Arten. Eine Art, Regalecus glesne, hält den Rekord für den längsten lebenden Knochenfisch: Sie erreicht eine Länge von bis zu 8 Metern.

via GBIF

Museum specimens

Specimen records
4
Family
Regalecidae
Collections
CSIRO, WAM
Recorded in
Australia

Wikidata facts

Instance of
taxon
Parent taxon
Lampriformes
Image
King of herrings.png
Show 6 more facts
taxon name
Regalecidae
Commons category
Regalecidae
taxon rank
family
topic's main category
Category:Regalecidae
taxon common name
Sildekonge
Sources (1)

via Wikidata · CC0

~11 min read

Encyclopedic overview

16 sections
Contents
  • Description
  • Evolution
  • Phylogeny
  • Taxonomy
  • Environment and distribution
  • Ecology and life history
  • Behavio<!--Article is in British English-->ur
  • Feeding ecology
  • Reproduction and life history
  • Predators and parasites
  • In folklore
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • Further reading
  • External links

The oarfish is a large and extremely long pelagic lampriform fish belonging to the small family Regalecidae. Found in areas spanning from temperate ocean zones to tropical ones, yet rarely seen by humans, the oarfish family contains three species in two genera. One of these, the giant oarfish (Regalecus glesne), is the longest bony fish alive, growing up to about in length.

The common name oarfish is thought to allude either to their highly compressed and elongated bodies or to the now discredited belief that the fish "row" themselves through the water with their pelvic fins. The family name Regalecidae is derived from the Latin regalis, meaning "royal". Although the larger species are considered game fish and are fished commercially on a small scale, oarfish are rarely caught alive; their flesh is not well regarded for eating due to its gelatinous consistency.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Regalecidae” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (11)