Brownsnout Spookfish - Biology and Ecology

Biology and Ecology

The diet of D. longipes consists primarily of copepods and other small crustaceans, though as food is scarce in the deep sea it may take anything it can catch. Reproduction is oviparous, with pelagic eggs and larvae. The larvoid juveniles and adults are covered in a gelatinous sheath. Flexion (the curvature of the notochord in the formation of the caudal fin) occurs at around a standard length of 13 mm (0.5 in), and metamorphosis at a standard length of 30 mm (1.2 in). The pectoral and pelvic fins form early, as does the stomach on the left side. Adult D. longipes exhibit paedomorphic characteristics found in the juveniles of other opisthoproctids, such as poorly developed muscles (for example the lack of ventral muscles, meaning the gut is enclosed only by the peritoneum and the skin), rudimentary scales and coloration, and the placement of the pectoral and pelvic fins on peduncles that are not connected to the body by muscles. Developed gonads have been observed in a 36 mm (1.4 in) male and a 40 mm (1.6 in) female. Their lifespan is 5 years.