Pleurogrammus is a genus of ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Hexagrammidae, the greenlings, known as Atka mackerels. These fishes are found in the northwestern Pacific Ocean.
| Pleurogrammus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Okhotsk atka mackerel | |
| |
| Atka mackerel | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Hexagrammidae |
| Subfamily: | Pleurogramminae Rutenberg, 1954[1] |
| Genus: | Pleurogrammus T. N. Gill, 1861 |
| Type species | |
| Labrax monopterygius | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
Taxonomy
editPleurogrammus was first proposed as a genus in 1861 by the American biologist Theodore Gill with Labrax monopterygius, which had been described in 1810 by Peter Simon Pallas, as its type species.[2][3] The genus was placed in the monogeneric subfamily Pleurogramminae within the family Hexagrammidae by E. P. Rutenberg in 1954.[1][4]
Etymology
editPleurogrammus is a compound of pleuro, which means "side", and grammus, meaning "line", a reference to the five lateral line canals on each flank.[5]
Species
editThe currently recognized species in this genus are:[6]
| Image | Scientific name | Common Name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| |
Pleurogrammus azonus D. S. Jordan & Metz, 1913 | Okhotsk atka mackerel | Sea of Okhotsk. |
 |
Pleurogrammus monopterygius (Pallas, 1810) | atka mackerel | Sea of Japan and the waters off Hokkaido, as well as the southern Kuril Islands, and from Stalemate and Bowers Bank in the Aleutian chain to Icy bay, Alaska |
Characteristics
editPleurogrammus species have no incision in the dorsal fin, or, if present, the incision is not deep. The caudal fin is forked and there are 5 lateral lines on each flankl. The upper surface of the skull is strongly ridged.[7] There are between 21 and 24 spines and 24 and 30 soft rays in the dorsal fin while the anal fin typically has no spine and has between 23 and 32 soft rays. The head is partially covered in scales.[4] These are relatively large species with the largest being P. azonus which has a maximum published total length is 62 cm (24 in), although P. monopterygius is only slightly smaller.[6]
Distribution and habitat
editPleurogrammus are found in the northern Pacific Ocean around Japan and in the Sea of Okhotsk east to Alaska.[4] These are mainly pelagic fishes.[7]
Fisheries
editPleurogrammus are fished for and P. monopterygius is the target of a commercial fishery in Alaska which mainly uses bottom trawls.[8]
References
edit- ^ a b Richard van der Laan; William N. Eschmeyer & Ronald Fricke (2014). "Family-group names of Recent fishes". Zootaxa. 3882 (2): 001–230. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1. PMID 25543675.
- ^ a b c Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Pleurogramminae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Pleurogrammus". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
- ^ a b c J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. pp. 467–495. ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6.
- ^ Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (18 July 2021). "Order Perciformes: Suborder Cottoidea: Infraorder Hexagrammales: Family Hexagrammidae". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
- ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Pleurogrammus". FishBase. August 2022 version.
- ^ a b Catherine W. Mecklenburg & William N. Eschmeyer (2003). "Family Hexagrammidae Gill 1889 Greenlings" (PDF). California Academy of Sciences Annotated Checklists of Fishes. 2.
- ^ "Atka Mackerel (Pleurogrammus monopterygius) Species Profile". Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Retrieved 12 December 2022.