Saccopharyngiformes


Saccopharyngiformes

[‚sak·ō·fə‚rin·jə′fȯr‚mēz] (vertebrate zoology) Formerly an order of actinopterygian fishes, the gulpers, now included in the Anguilliformes.

Saccopharyngiformes

 

an order of fish that comprises two families: Saccopharyngidae and Eurypharyngidae. Saccopharyngiformes are deepwater fish with elongated bodies (up to 2 m long). The skeleton is somewhat vestigial. The mouth is huge and the jaws are very elongated. There is no gill cover. Saccopharyngiformes are found at depths of 500 to 4,000 m in the Atlantic (primarily in its tropical zone), Indian, and Pacific oceans. They feed on fish and pelagic crustaceans.