Genus of fishes
Gigantactis is a genus of deep-sea fish of the family Gigantactinidae , first described in 1902 by August Brauer .[3] [1] The species in this genus are poorly known and found in all oceans, at depths of 1,000–2,500 metres (3,300–8,200 ft). The most striking feature of these fish is extremely enlarged first filament of dorsal fin, called the illicium , with bioluminescent photophore at its end. (In G. longicauda the length of the illicium can be up to 3.3 times the standard length of the fish.)[4] The genus name, Gigantactis , derives from the Greek, gigas (gigantic ) and aktis (ray), describing the genus by its long dorsal-fin spine which serves as a lure.[5]
As of 2024, there are currently 22 recognized extant species in this genus:[6]
Gigantactis balushkini Kharin, 1984
Gigantactis cheni H. C. Ho & K. T. Shao, 2019
Gigantactis elsmani Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981 (Elsman's Whipnose)
Gigantactis gargantua Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981 (Gigantic Whipnose)
Gigantactis gibbsi Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis golovani Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis gracilicauda Regan , 1925
Gigantactis herwigi Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis ios Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis kreffti Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis longicauda Bertelsen & Pietsch , 2002
Gigantactis longicirra Waterman, 1939
Gigantactis macronema Regan , 1925
Gigantactis meadi Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis microdontis Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis microphthalmus Regan & Trewavas , 1932
Gigantactis paresca Rickle, 2024 [7]
Gigantactis paxtoni Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981 (Paxton's whipnose)
Gigantactis perlatus Beebe & Crane , 1947
Gigantactis savagei Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
Gigantactis vanhoeffeni A. B. Brauer , 1902 (Cosmopolitan whipnose)
Gigantactis watermani Bertelsen , Pietsch & Lavenberg, 1981
^ a b Brauer, A. (1902). "Diagnosen von neuen Tiefseefischen, welche von der Valdivia-Expedition gesammelt sind" . Zoologischer Anzeiger . 15 (668): 295–296 [295].
^ Froese, R., Pauly, D. (2018). Bailly N (ed.). "Gigantactis Brauer, 1902" . FishBase . World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 17 April 2018 .
^ "Australian Faunal Directory: Gigantactis " . biodiversity.org.au . Retrieved 2022-09-21 .
^ E. Bertelsen ; Theodore W. Pietsch (December 2002). "New Species of Deep-Sea Anglerfish of the Genus Gigantactis (Lophiiformes: Gigantactinidae) from the Western North Atlantic Ocean". Copeia . 2002 (4): 958–961. doi :10.1643/0045-8511(2002)002[0958:NSODSA]2.0.CO;2 . ISSN 0045-8511 . Wikidata Q95667829 .
^ Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2023). "Gigantactis elsmani " in FishBase . February 2023 version.
^ Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2013). Species of Gigantactis in FishBase . March 2013 version.
^ Rickle, Samantha Z. (2024-05-17). "A New Species of the Anglerfish Genus Gigantactis (Lophiiformes: Ceratioidei) from the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Eastern North Pacific Ocean, an Ecosystem Threatened by Deep-Sea Mining" . Ichthyology & Herpetology . 112 (2): 153–155. doi :10.1643/i2023056 . ISSN 2766-1512 .