Chimaerids (ghost sharks and elephant fish) are related to sharks and rays, but they have a skin covering their gills, with a single opening instead of gill slits. Their skins are smooth and their dorsal fins are preceded by a single large spine. |
In Greek mythology, a Chimera is a fire-breathing female monster with a lion's head, a goat's body and a serpent's tail. (Gk khimaira= female goat)
Chimaerids are closely related to sharks, having a similar
cartilaginous skeleton but lacking the flattened body form of skates and
rays. Representatives of this order are found in all the oceans of the
world, but they are generally restricted to cool temperate regions in waters
between 200 and 1200m depth. They can be distinguished from sharks by
their gill slits being covered with a skin (operculum), leaving a single
opening on each side. Chimaerids also have smooth skins without the dermal
denticles of sharks. They also have a single spine in front of their first
dorsal fins, which can be laid flat as in bony fishes. Their heads are
grooved with lateral lines and their upper jaws are fully fused to their
heads, unlike in sharks where the upper jaw is only loosely attached to
the skull. Their teeth are modified to form flattened crushing plates with
sharp cutting margins; two pair in the upper jaw, and a single pair in
the lower jaw.
Male chimaerids have the normal claspers or intromittent
sexual organs that are present in the sharks and rays alongside their pelvic
fins, but they also have a second pair of flat, retractable claspers in
front of the pelvic fins. These are usually armed with hooks and are probably
used only to grip the female during mating. There is also a club-like frontal
clasper on top of the head. All chimaerids are oviparous, laying large
eggs in a horny case which is deposited on the bottom. Like most sharks
and rays, development is slow and the young do not hatch until six months
to a year after the eggs are laid.
Cimaerids live mainly on soft muddy bottoms on the deeper
parts of the continental shelf or on the continental slope. They feed mainly
on shellfish and bottom-living invertebrates, as well as a few small fish.
Elephant fishes are found in the Antarctic Basin and the South Pacific. The New Zealand species grows to 120 cm long, and is common along the east coast of the South Island, where it comes in-shore for breeding. Its curious trunk-like proboscis is used for locating shellfish. |
Fishing: The elephant fish is exploited commercially, particularly off the Canterbury coast. They are also occasionally netted off the North Island, south of East Cape and south of Kaipara on the west coast. Outside the breeding season, elephantfish live on the boundary of the continental shelf in waters up to 200m deep. The fish are caught commercially during their inshore migration, either in trawls or in setnets, and the total annual landings are about 1000 tonnes. The firm white fillets are of good edible quality, resembling that of hapuku (groper, sea bass), but requiring prior soaking in fresh water to eliminate a slight ammonia taste. The flesh is either used locally in the fish and chips trade or is exported to Australia. |
![]() Fins/size/weight: size 0.5 to 1.2m. |
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Growth:
Distribution:
![]() This fish has a conical snout and an elongate, tapering body. On its back it has a triangular first dorsal fin (and spine) and a long, low second dorsal fin. The dark ghost shark is dark grey above with a mottled pattern of distinct silver-white markings, and pale silver-grey underneath. The mouth is small, and located well back and beneath the snout. |
![]() The pale ghost shark is found in deeper water than the dark ghost shark, and it is also larger, averaging 60-70cm. Its snout is more rounded than that of the dark ghost shark, and its colour is paler. Its skin is pale brown above, with a few distinct darker bands, and it is white below. Pale ghost sharks occur further south than the dark ghost sharks, being common on the Campbell Plateau and on the Snares Shelf south of Stewart Island. |
Rhinochimaeridae:
long-nosed chimaeras
Hariotta raleighana: long-nosed chimaera (hariotta=?; raleighana= named after Raleigh) |
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