Teleostei (teleosts) >
Myctophiformes (Lanternfishes) >
Myctophidae (Lanternfishes) > Diaphinae
Etymology: Diaphus: Greek, dis, dia = through + Greek, physa, phyo = to beget, to have as offspring (Ref. 45335).
Eponymy: Dr Erik ‘Bertel’ Bertelsen (1912–1993) was a celebrated Danish fisheries biologist and ichthyologist at the Zoological Museum of the University of Copenhagen. [...] (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; bathypelagic; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 0 - 300 m (Ref. 4479). Deep-water; 40°N - 40°S, 78°W - 157°W
Eastern Atlantic: off Portugal to Mauritania; Gabon to Angola. Western Atlantic: southern Florida, USA (Ref. 26340) to the Antilles (Ref. 26340) and Venezuela; Brazil to Argentina (with disjunct distribution over the minimum region off Brazil). Elsewhere, from two stations in Northwest Pacific and with reservation from near Hawaii. Southwest Pacific: Australia (Ref. 7300) and New Zealand (Ref. 5755).
Atlantic and Eastern Pacific: occurring in tropical warm waters of both hemispheres (Ref. 47377).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 9.1 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 4479)
High-oceanic, found between 200-300 m during the day and between 60-175 at night (Ref. 4479, 58302). Mesopelagic (Ref. 58302, 75154). Minimum depth from Ref. 58018.
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Hulley, P.A., 1990. Myctophidae. p. 398-467. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI; Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 1. (Ref. 4479)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
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