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Hoplostethus mediterraneus Cuvier, 1829

Mediterranean slimehead
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
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Hoplostethus mediterraneus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Hoplostethus mediterraneus (Mediterranean slimehead)
Hoplostethus mediterraneus
Picture by De Sanctis, A.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Trachichthyiformes (Roughies) > Trachichthyidae (Slimeheads)
Etymology: Hoplostethus: Greek, hoplon = weapon + Greek, stetho, stethion = brest; literal = to prick a little breast (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Cuvier.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; benthopelagic; depth range 100 - 1408 m (Ref. 9942). Subtropical; 68°N - 78°S, 98°W - 167°W

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Cosmopolitan. Atlantic. Indian and Pacific oceans and the Mediterranean.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 16.5, range 13 - ? cm
Max length : 42.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3397); common length : 20.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 4784); max. reported age: 11 years (Ref. 26316)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 6 - 7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12 - 14; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 10. Body dusky pink above, silvery below; paired fins pale (Ref. 4181). Body deep, oval. Scales deciduous, spinules minute, margins usually entire (Ref. 37108).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

This species is reported to be pelagic in Maul, 1990 (Ref. 3583); however, Schneider, 1990 (Ref. 2683) indicates the species is demersal. Found over muddy bottom (Ref. 26999).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Moore, Jon A. | Collaborators

Maul, G.E., 1990. Trachichthyidae. p. 620-622. In J.C. Quéro, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI, Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 2. (Ref. 3583)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 22 May 2013

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: of no interest
FAO - Fisheries: landings; Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet composition
Food consumption
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Maturity/Gills rel.
Fecundity
Spawning
Spawning aggregations
Eggs
Egg development
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Distribution
Countries
FAO areas
Ecosystems
Occurrences
Introductions
BRUVS - Videos
Anatomy
Gill area
Brain
Otolith
Physiology
Body composition
Nutrients
Oxygen consumption
Swimming type
Swimming speed
Visual pigments
Fish sound
Diseases & Parasites
Toxicity (LC50s)
Genetics
Genetics
Heterozygosity
Heritability
Human related
Aquaculture systems
Aquaculture profiles
Strains
Ciguatera cases
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
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References
References

Tools

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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Fisheries: landings; Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoobank | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 4.5 - 15.9, mean 10.3 °C (based on 1342 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01122 (0.00830 - 0.01517), b=3.05 (2.96 - 3.14), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.5   ±0.53 se; based on food items.
Generation time: 11.9 ( na - na) years. Estimated as median ln(3)/K based on 1 growth studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.11; tmax=11).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  High to very high vulnerability (67 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref. 125649):  Low vulnerability (7 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 36 [14, 170] mg/100g; Iron = 0.667 [0.323, 1.472] mg/100g; Protein = 17.1 [15.7, 18.4] %; Omega3 = 0.347 [0.140, 0.941] g/100g; Selenium = 51.9 [22.6, 114.4] μg/100g; VitaminA = 15.4 [3.6, 73.8] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.714 [0.457, 1.152] mg/100g (wet weight);