Other identification tools | FishBase

Fish Identification: Find Species

Class: Holocephali
Order: Chimaeriformes
Family: Chimaeridae Shortnose chimaeras or ratfishes

Genus: Hydrolagus

(See list of species below)



Select Class:     Select Order:   
Select Family: Subfamily:     Select Genus:

Select Ocean (marine/brackish) or Continent (freshwater):
                                                          Specify a country:

Total number of spines in dorsal and anal fins (optional)


25 species (see list below)

1 of 1 Jump to:

Photo by Mouritsen, R.

Northeast Atlantic
Max. Length 130 cm TL
Hydrolagus affinis (de Brito Capello, 1868)

Photo by Mouritsen, R.
 
Hydrolagus affinis
[Smalleyed rabbitfish]

Photo by Le Noury, P.

Western Indian Ocean
Max. Length 67 cm TL
Hydrolagus africanus (Gilchrist, 1922)

Photo by Le Noury, P.
 
Hydrolagus africanus
[African chimaera]

Photo by NOAA\NMFS\Mississippi Laboratory

Eastern Atlantic
Max. Length 54 cm SL
Hydrolagus alberti Bigelow & Schroeder, 1951

Photo by NOAA\NMFS\Mississippi Laboratory
 
Hydrolagus alberti
[]
No picture found
Eastern Central Pacific
Max. Length 48 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus alphus
[]

Photo by Reyes, R.B.

Northwest Pacific

Hydrolagus barbouri (Garman, 1908)

Photo by Reyes, R.B.
 
Hydrolagus barbouri
[]
No picture found
Southwest Pacific
Max. Length 111.5 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus bemisi
[]

Photo by Nichols, J.

Northeastern Pacific
Max. Length 100 cm TL
Hydrolagus colliei (Lay & Bennett, 1839)

Photo by Nichols, J.
 
Hydrolagus colliei
[Spotted ratfish]

Photo by FAO

Western Central Pacific
Max. Length 73 cm TL
Hydrolagus deani (Smith & Radcliffe, 1912)

Photo by FAO
 
Hydrolagus deani
[Philippine chimaera]
No picture found
Northwest Pacific

 
Hydrolagus eidolon
[]
No picture found
Southern Ocean
Max. Length 108.5 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus homonycteris
[Black ghostshark]

Photo by FAO

Indo-West Pacific
Max. Length 88 cm TL
Hydrolagus lemures (Whitley, 1939)

Photo by FAO
 
Hydrolagus lemures
[Blackfin ghostshark]
No picture found
Northeast Atlantic
Max. Length 117.7 cm OT

 
Hydrolagus lusitanicus
[]

Photo by Reyes, P.

Eastern Pacific
Max. Length 63.9 cm TL
Hydrolagus macrophthalmus de Buen, 1959

Photo by Reyes, P.
 
Hydrolagus macrophthalmus
[Big eye chimaera]
No picture found
Western Pacific
Max. Length 80.1 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus marmoratus
[]

Photo by Fischer, L.G.

Southwestern Atlantic
Max. Length 69.5 cm TL
Hydrolagus matallanasi Soto & Vooren, 2004

Photo by Fischer, L.G.
 
Hydrolagus matallanasi
[Striped rabbitfish]
No picture found
Eastern Central Pacific
Max. Length 38.1 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus mccoskeri
[Galápagos Ghost Shark]
No picture found
Eastern Pacific Ocean
Max. Length 120 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus melanophasma
[Eastern Pacific Black Ghostshark]

Photo by JAMARC

Eastern Atlantic
Max. Length 41 cm SL
Hydrolagus mirabilis (Collett, 1904)

Photo by JAMARC
 
Hydrolagus mirabilis
[Large-eyed rabbitfish]

Photo by Shao, K.T.

Northwest Pacific

Hydrolagus mitsukurii (Jordan & Snyder, 1904)

Photo by Shao, K.T.
 
Hydrolagus mitsukurii
[Spookfish]

Photo by SeaFIC

Southwest Pacific
Max. Length 96 cm TL
Hydrolagus novaezealandiae (Fowler, 1911)

Photo by SeaFIC
 
Hydrolagus novaezealandiae
[Dark ghost shark]

Photo by Yau, B.

Eastern Indian Ocean and
Max. Length 85 cm WD
Hydrolagus ogilbyi (Waite, 1898)

Photo by Yau, B.
 
Hydrolagus ogilbyi
[Ogilbys ghostshark]

Photo by Wirtz, P.

Northeast Atlantic

Hydrolagus pallidus Hardy & Stehmann, 1990

Photo by Wirtz, P.
 
Hydrolagus pallidus
[]
No picture found
Pacific Ocean

 
Hydrolagus purpurescens
[Purple chimaera]
No picture found
Western Pacific
Max. Length 120.4 cm TL

 
Hydrolagus trolli
[Pointy-nosed blue chimaera]
No picture found
Eastern Indian Ocean

 
Hydrolagus waitei
[]
25 Species of Family Chimaeridae with Genus Hydrolagus
(Shortnose chimaeras or ratfishes)
Sort by: Species Length Year
1 of 1 Jump to:
Year Scientific Name English Name Distribution Max. Length (cm)
1868 Hydrolagus affinis Smalleyed rabbitfish Northeast Atlantic 130 TL
1922 Hydrolagus africanus African chimaera Western Indian Ocean 67 TL
1951 Hydrolagus alberti Eastern Atlantic 54 SL
2006 Hydrolagus alphus Eastern Central Pacific 48 TL
1908 Hydrolagus barbouri Northwest Pacific
2002 Hydrolagus bemisi Southwest Pacific 111.5 TL
1839 Hydrolagus colliei Spotted ratfish Northeastern Pacific 100 TL
1912 Hydrolagus deani Philippine chimaera Western Central Pacific 73 TL
1925 Hydrolagus eidolon Northwest Pacific
2008 Hydrolagus homonycteris Black ghostshark Southern Ocean 108.5 TL
1939 Hydrolagus lemures Blackfin ghostshark Indo-West Pacific 88 TL
2005 Hydrolagus lusitanicus Northeast Atlantic 117.7 OT
1959 Hydrolagus macrophthalmus Big eye chimaera Eastern Pacific 63.9 TL
2008 Hydrolagus marmoratus Western Pacific 80.1 TL
2004 Hydrolagus matallanasi Striped rabbitfish Southwestern Atlantic 69.5 TL
2006 Hydrolagus mccoskeri Galápagos Ghost Shark Eastern Central Pacific 38.1 TL
2009 Hydrolagus melanophasma Eastern Pacific Black Ghostshark Eastern Pacific Ocean 120 TL
1904 Hydrolagus mirabilis Large-eyed rabbitfish Eastern Atlantic 41 SL
1904 Hydrolagus mitsukurii Spookfish Northwest Pacific
1911 Hydrolagus novaezealandiae Dark ghost shark Southwest Pacific 96 TL
1898 Hydrolagus ogilbyi Ogilbys ghostshark Eastern Indian Ocean and 85 WD
1990 Hydrolagus pallidus Northeast Atlantic
1905 Hydrolagus purpurescens Purple chimaera Pacific Ocean
2002 Hydrolagus trolli Pointy-nosed blue chimaera Western Pacific 120.4 TL
1907 Hydrolagus waitei Eastern Indian Ocean



Other identification tools in FishBase


Quick Identification
Identification keys
Identification by morphometrics
Identification by pictures:
          If you already know the Family, go to Search FishBase, select Family and click on 'Identification by pictures' to display all available pictures in FishBase for the family.

          If you already know the Country, go to
Search FishBase, select Country and click on 'Identification by pictures' to display all available pictures in FishBase for the country.

          If you already know the Ecosystem, go to
Search FishBase, select Ecosystem and click on 'Identification by pictures' to display all available pictures in FishBase for the ecosystem.
cfm script by eagbayani, 30.11.04, ,  php script by cmilitante, 05/11/2010 ,  last modified by cmilitante, 14/03/2013