#skilfish

Whale Fall - Veiled Sea

Endless Ocean Luminous, Nintendo Switch

An historic piscine visitor

For the first time in our 30 years, we have a skilfish (Erilepsis zonifer) on display! A Bay Area fisherman was out looking for sablefish (a sustainable seafood many know as “fish sticks”) when a curious catch caught his eye.

“He knew this was a rare fish and decided to hold on to it so it could be displayed in public aquaria” explained Monterey Bay Aquarium Collector Kevin Lewand. After a brief stay at the Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco, this unique visitor is making itself at home in our Monterey Bay Habitats Exhibit.

How low can they go?

Skilfish are found in deep waters from Japan, through Alaska, to the Monterey Bay. They can grow to 6 feet, weigh over 200 pounds and live at least 20 years. This particular fish is about 3 feet long, and weighs about 20 pounds. It was found 1,800 feet down the steep slopes of the continental shelf, just off of the Farallon Islands.

(Image: Google Maps)

Caring for deep-sea critters

To display deep-living animals like the skilfish, our aquarists address three main environmental factors: 

Pressure: Many deep-sea fishes, like our various rockfish species, do just fine at lower pressures near the surface—so long as they’re brought up slowly. While it wasn’t necessary for the skilfish, our aquarists sometimes use specialized fish recompression chambers to treat pressure-related issues—just as you would with human SCUBA divers.

Light: If you’re used to life far from the shining sun, bright lights are uncomfortable. Fortunately, our Monterey Bay Habitats enclosure’s dim light and dark crevices in the “Deep Reef” wing were designed with light-sensitive animals in mind. 

Temperature: Deep-sea animals need cold water. We pump seawater into the aquarium from 60 feet down in the Monterey Bay to provide chillier climes for coldwater critters like the skilfish.

Why display skilfish?

Very little is known about skilfish. In fact, every skilfish ever found was by accident, just like ours. Even in their largely inaccessible range, they’re seldom spotted. This is a rare opportunity for marine scientists and aquarium visitors to see such an elusive species for themselves.

This skilfish shows us that there is still a lot we don’t know about the deep blue sea—and reminds us how important it is to conserve our ocean. Who knows what else is out there?

"SAME" IS PLURAL FOR "SKILFISH"