Ablennes
| Flat needlefish | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Beloniformes |
| Family: | Belonidae |
| Genus: |
Ablennes D. S. Jordan & Fordice, 1887 |
| Species: | A. hians |
| Binomial name | |
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Ablennes hians Valenciennes, 1846 |
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| Synonyms | |
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The flat needlefish (Ablennes hians) the only known member of the genus Ablennes, is a marine fish of the family Belonidae. Flat needlefish are considered gamefish, frequently caught with the help of artificial lights, but are not often eaten because of their green-colored flesh.
Although they have no spine, they do have several soft rays. There are 23-26 rays on the dorsal fin and 24-28 on the anal. They have 86-93 vertebrae. Dorsally, flat needlefish are blueish, white ventrally, with dark blotches and 12-14 vertical bars in the middle of the body. Flat needlefish have an elongated body, with scythe-shaped pectoral, and anal fins. They also have a dark lobe on the posterior part of their dorsal fins. The longest recorded flat needlefish measured 140 cm long, Measurements for flat needlifish body length do not include caudal fin and head because the fish's long jaws are often broken off. The largest recorded weight for a flat needlefish was 4.8kg.
Flat needlefish are found worldwide in tropical and temperate seas. In the Eastern Atlantic, they are known from Cape Verde and Dakar to Moçamedes in Angola. In the western Atlantic they are known from Chesapeake Bay south to Brazil. They are found throughout the Indian Ocean, and in the western Pacific from the southern islands of Japan to Australia and Tuvalu.
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Wikipedia