Benthodesmus vityazi

Benthodesmus vityazi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scombriformes
Family: Trichiuridae
Genus: Benthodesmus
Species:
B. vityazi
Binomial name
Benthodesmus vityazi
Parin & Becker, 1970


Location

Benthodesmus vityazi, the Vityaz' frostfish, lives in the Indo-Pacific, with latitude ranging from 33°N - 20°S, and longitudes ranging from 49°E - 141°W. Adults from the benthopelagic are located from 640 to 820 m, while juveniles from the mesopelagic are located from 170 to 900 m.[1]

Biological features

It is a silvery frostfish with blackish jaws and a gill cover, with the inside of the mouth and gill cavities black in color. The pelvic fins are inserted behind the posterior end of the pectoral-fin base, and they have relatively low number of vertebrae, dorsal and anal fin-elements for species with the posterior position of pelvic fins. The anus is located under the 2nd or 3rd soft dorsal-fin ray, and external rays developed only in the posterior part of the anal fin.[2][3]

Discovery

The fish was discovered by the ship Vityaz, after which it was named.[4]

Etymology (scientific name)

The name “Benthodesmus vityazi” comes from Greek, with “benthos” meaning depth of the sea, and “desmos,” meaning bond or chain.[5]

See also

Glossary of ichthyology

Cutlassfish

Benthodesmus

Ray-finned fish

Demersal fish

Scombriformes

References

  1. ^ "Benthodesmus vityazi summary page". FishBase. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  2. ^ "Vityaz Frostfish (Benthodesmus vityazi)". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
  3. ^ "Vityaz Frostfish, Benthodesmus vityazi Parin & Becker 1970". Fishes of Australia. Retrieved 14 September 2025. This article incorporates text from this source, which is available under the CC BY 3.0 license.
  4. ^ "Order SCOMBRIFORMES: Families ICOSTEIDAE, SCOMBROLABRACIDAE, GEMPYLIDAE, TRICHIURIDAE and SCOMBRIDAE". The ETYFish Project. 2020-01-28. Retrieved 2025-09-21.
  5. ^ "Benthodesmus vityazi summary page". FishBase. Retrieved 2025-09-21.