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Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Perciformes (Perch-likes) > Echeneidae (Remoras)
Etymology: Remora: Latin, remora = delay, hindrance (1567) (Ref. 45335); remora: remora meaning delay or hindrance; these fish were once thought to delay a ship's progress when they attached to the hull (Ref. 4389).

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 200 m (Ref. 86942). Subtropical, preferred ?; 60°N - 36°S, 180°W - 180°E

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Cosmopolitan in warm waters. Western Pacific: Japan (Ref. 559) to New Zealand and Norfolk Island (Ref. 8879). Eastern Pacific: San Francisco in California, USA to Chile (Ref. 2850). Western Atlantic: Nova Scotia, Canada to Argentina (Ref. 7251). Eastern Atlantic: North Sea to the Canary Islands, including the western Mediterranean. Recorded from Iceland (Ref. 13583) and between Sweden and Denmark (Ref. 28571).

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 86.4 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 26340); common length : 40.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 26999); max. published weight: 1.1 kg (Ref. 40637)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 22-26; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 22 - 24. Dark brownish grey in color (Ref. 4389). During the course of development, fin is transformed into a suction disc (Ref. 35388). Deeper-bodied than Echeneis naucrates (Ref. 37816).

Usually associated with sharks but also attaches itself to other large fishes, sea turtles and even ships (Ref. 2850, 58302); found in gill chambers, fins and body surface (Ref. 5951). Sometimes free-swimming (Ref. 2850). Younger individual is more active as parasite pickers (Ref. 26938). Feeds on parasitic copepods (Ref. 35388).

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

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Lachner, E.A. and A. Post, 1990. Echeneidae. p. 725-728. 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. 10791)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

Least Concern (LC)

CITES (Ref. 94142)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial

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Remora remora (Linnaeus, 1758)