Author: (Linnaeus, 1766)
Phycis phycis (Linnaeus, 1766)
Status in World Register of Marine Species:
Accepted name: Phycis phycis (Linnaeus, 1766) (updated 2009-06-25)
Diagnosis: coronal fossa on frontals open in front of commissure between supra-orbital canals. Pelvic finrays extending just to anal fin origin. No elongate ray in first dorsal fin. First dorsal finrays 9-11 second dorsal finrays 60-63; anal finrays 54-64; about 120- 140 scales in lateral line and 11-12 scales between first dorsal fin base and lateral line. Colour: blackish- or reddish-brown above, lighter on sides and belly. Size: to 60 cm SL, usually 15-25 cm.
Habitat: rocks, at 100-200 m. Behaviour: nocturnal, hiding among stones during the day. Food: small fishes, various invertebrates. Reproduction: commonly spring, from January to May.
Distribution: north-eastern Atlantic from Bay of Biscay to Morocco and Cape Verde, also Mediterranean, Adriatic.
Eggs, larvae and young stages. D'Ancona, 1933: 239, pl. Xlll (fig. 9-14).
Otoliths (sagitta). Sanz EcheverrÃa, 1929: 79, pl. VI (fig. 12-13); 1935: 258, pl. XXlX (fig. 28-29).