Epigonus occidentalis Goode & Bean, 1896
Western deepsea cardinalfish
photo by NOAA\NMFS\Mississippi Laboratory

Family:  Epigonidae (Deepwater cardinalfishes)
Max. size:  25.8 cm TL (male/unsexed); max.weight: 149.0 g
Environment:  bathydemersal; marine; depth range 360 - 735 m
Distribution:  Western Central Atlantic: Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal spines (total): 7-7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10-10. Well-developed opercular spines present. Distance between the anal opening and the beginning of the anal fin is 41-55 percent of the distance between the base of the pelvic fin and the anal opening (Ref. 31632).
Biology:  A mesobenthic-pelagic species living mainly above the bottom (Ref. 31632).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 12 October 2018 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


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