Discontinuous distribution of <i>Alepisaurus ferox</i> Lowe, 1833 (Alepisauridae, Teleostei) in the Indian EEZ as revealed by the tuna longline survey

Abstract

Distribution pattern of longnose lancetfish, <i>Alepisaurus ferox</i> Lowe, 1833 in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone had been analyzed for the period January 2005 to December 2007. While longnose lancetfish is caught from almost all the areas surveyed in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar waters, it is is not caught from areas north of latitude 16°24¢N of the Arabian Sea. Discontinuous distribution of longnose lancetfish in the Indian EEZ can be related to the existence of perennial Oxygen Minimum Zone in the northern Arabian Sea. Present study also consists the results of preliminary studies on the biology of this species.