Is the ribbonfish a deep-sea fish? A detailed explanation of the ribbonfish's habitat water layers
The ribbonfish is a migratory fish with very omnivorous and extremely greedy feeding habits, sometimes engaging in cannibalism, and has a habit of diurnal vertical migration, gathering during the day in the middle and lower water layers of the ocean, and moving at night to the bottom layer of seawater, mainly distributed in the western Pacific and Indian Oceans, and can be seen in all coastal provinces of China. Let's take a look below at whether the ribbonfish is a deep-sea fish!
Is the ribbonfish a deep-sea fish?
The ribbonfish is not a deep-sea fish. Fish of the middle and lower layers usually found at depths exceeding 200 m are commonly called deep-sea fish. The ribbonfish is a warm-water middle and lower layer migratory fish, inhabiting muddy sea bottoms at depths of 60-100 m, feeding mainly on Acetes shrimp, squid and various fish, sinking to the depths during the day and rising to the surface layer at night, so the ribbonfish does not count as a deep-sea fish.
Is the ribbonfish seafood?
The ribbonfish is seafood. The ribbonfish is mainly distributed in the western Pacific and Indian Oceans, and is found in China's Yellow Sea, East China Sea, Bohai Sea all the way to the South China Sea. Together with the large yellow croaker, the small yellow croaker and squid, it is known as one of China's four great marine products, which shows that the ribbonfish is seafood.
Species and distribution of the ribbonfish
1. Cutlassfish (Assurger ansae): The body of the cutlassfish is very elongated, laterally compressed, ribbon-like, with an extremely long tail that gradually tapers backward but does not end in a slender whip-like form; the head is narrow and long, the dorsal surface of the head is almost straight, the front end is pointed, the snout is long and pointed, the eye is medium-large, the mouth is large and straight, the lower jaw is longer than the upper jaw, the teeth are well developed and sharp, laterally compressed and pointed, sparsely arranged, and the front end of the upper jaw bears 3 pairs of hook-shaped large canine teeth; it is distributed in the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions between 45°N-30°S.
2. Boubée's narrow-skulled ribbonfish (Benthodesmus): Boubée's narrow-skulled ribbonfish mainly inhabits near seamount ridges and occasionally swims to coastal waters, feeding on medium-to-large fish such as bigeye and round scad; it is distributed in the western Indian Ocean around Mauritius and in the northwestern Pacific in the Ryukyu waters of Japan; juveniles have been caught off Xiaoliuqiu, Taiwan, China.
3. Striped narrow-skulled ribbonfish (Benthodesmus): The striped narrow-skulled ribbonfish is a bottom-dwelling oceanic migratory fish, mainly inhabiting near the steep slopes of the continental shelf and occasionally swimming to coastal waters, feeding on medium-to-large fish such as bigeye and round scad; it is distributed in the western Atlantic including the Caribbean, off southern Brazil, and in the northwestern Pacific in the Ryukyu waters of Japan and the East China Sea waters of China; this fish has been caught off eastern Taiwan, China.
4. Sand ribbonfish (Trichiurus lepturus): The sand ribbonfish can inhabit depths of up to 100 m, lacks pelvic and caudal fins, and its color is a metallic-reflective steel-like blue, with a white pointed slender part, a pale anal margin, usually white caudal fin membrane, black-tipped jaws, and a pale black inner operculum and anterior part of the shoulder girdle; the body length can reach 100 cm; it inhabits coastal waters, is carnivorous, feeding on crustaceans, squid, fish, etc., and can be used as a food fish; it is distributed along the northern coast of the Indian Ocean, east to Australia, north to the Ryukyu waters of Japan, and in the South China Sea, Taiwan Strait and other waters of China.
5. Japanese ribbonfish (Trichiurus japonicus): The Japanese ribbonfish, also known as the white ribbonfish, thin ribbonfish, etc., is a warm-temperate middle and bottom layer migratory fish, generally inhabiting continental shelf coastal waters near sand-mud or muddy bottoms; it is distributed in the northwestern Pacific, from Japan, Taiwan, China, and the mainland coast to the South China Sea near Hong Kong, China, and is produced throughout Taiwan, China.
6. South China Sea ribbonfish (Trichiurus nanhaiensis): The South China Sea ribbonfish is a warm-temperate middle and bottom layer migratory fish, generally inhabiting waters near sand-mud and muddy bottoms at depths of 60-100 m; it is distributed in the western Pacific, including Taiwan, China, the Philippines, the South China Sea, etc.; in Taiwan, China it is mainly distributed in the southwestern, southern, southeastern and Penghu waters, among other places.