Myxini (hagfishes) >
Myxiniformes (Hagfishes) >
Myxinidae (Hagfishes) > Eptatretinae
Etymology: Eptatretus: hepta (Gr.), seven; tretos (Gr.), perforated (i.e., with holes), referring to seven gill apertures on what would later be described as Homea banksii (=E. cirrhatus) [range within genus is 6-14 pairs of gill apertures] (See ETYFish); bobwisneri: Replacement name of E. wisneri McMillan 1999, which became a junior homonym of Paramyxine wisneri Kuo, Huang & Mok 1994 when Paramyxine was subsumed into Eptatretus; the name continues to honor Robert (“Bob”) L. Wisner (1921-2005), McMillan’s colleague at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, for “invaluable” assistance with her hagfish research and other contributions to ichthyology (See ETYFish).
Eponymy: Robert ‘Bob’ Lester Wisner (1912–2005) was honoured for his “…valuable assistance with C.B. McMillan’s myxinid research as well as his other contributions to ichthyology.” (See Wisner, also see Fern) (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; bathydemersal; non-migratory; depth range 512 - 577 m (Ref. 123790). Deep-water
Southeast Pacific: known only from the Galapagos Islands (Ref. 31788).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 32.8 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 31788); 35.6 cm TL (female)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
This species is distinguished from its congeners except E. gomoni, E. luzonicus, E. octatrema, E. okinoseanus by the following characters: eight pairs of gill apertures that are well-spaced and arranged in an almost straight line; teeth 3/2 multicusps pattern; total cusps 44-47 (vs. 50 in E. gomoni, 38-40 in E. octatrema); prebranchial pores 9-11 (vs. 12-13 in E. gomoni, 22-26 in E. octatrema, 13-17 in E. okinoseanus); trunk pores 43-47 (vs. 57-58 in E. gomoni, 63-68 in E. octatrema, 54-61 in E. okinoseanus); total pores 73-76 (vs. 91-93 in E. gomoni, 77-82 in E. indrambaryai, 84-88 in E. luzonicus, 104-117 in E. octatrema, 87-97 in
E. okinoseanus); nasal-sinus papillae absent (vs. one single nasal-sinus papilla in E. luzonicus, two bilaterally symmetrical nasal-sinus papillae in E. octatrema) (Ref. 123790).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Copulatory organ absent. The gonads of hagfishes are situated in the peritoneal cavity. The ovary is found in the anterior portion of the gonad, and the testis is found in the posterior part. The animal becomes female if the cranial part of the gonad develops or male if the caudal part undergoes differentiation. If none develops, then the animal becomes sterile. If both anterior and posterior parts develop, then the animal becomes a functional hermaphrodite. However, hermaphroditism being characterised as functional needs to be validated by more reproduction studies (Ref. 51361 ).
McMillan, C.B., 1999. Three new species of hagfish (Myxinidae, Eptatretus) from the Galápagos Islands. Fish. Bull. 97:110-117. (Ref. 31788)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: of no interest
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00204 (0.00094 - 0.00444), b=2.93 (2.74 - 3.12), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.0 ±0.7 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Fec assumed to be <100).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low to moderate vulnerability (26 of 100).
![Image of Eptatretus bobwisneri (Bob Wisner\](/images/thumbnails/gif/tn_MYXINIT0.gif "Image of Eptatretus bobwisneri (Bob Wisner\")
