Giant grenadier

Albatrossia pectoralis

Fish
IUCN: Not evaluated

Usual depth545–1,271 m
Water temperature3–17 °C
Best monthsSeptember
How commonOccasional

About this species

Albatrossia pectoralis, the giant grenadier or giant rattail, is a very large rattail, and the only member of the genus Albatrossia. It is found in the north Pacific from northern Japan to the Okhotsk and Bering Seas, east to the Gulf of Alaska, and south to northern Baja California in Mexico. It is found at depths between 140 and at least 4,250 m, but typically between 700 and 1100 m. The giant grenadier has the usual greatly elongated, pointed tail of the rattails.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Albatrossia”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 5 records
February: 8 records
March: 5 records
April: 19 records
May: 24 records
June: 27 records
July: 57 records
August: 513 records
September: 878 records
October: 20 records
November: 6 records
December: 0 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 545–1,271 m · Deepest record: 3,098 m

0–10 m: 59 records
10–20 m: 0 records
20–30 m: 0 records
30–40 m: 0 records
40–50 m: 0 records
50–60 m: 0 records
60–70 m: 0 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 2 records
110+ m: 1,148 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 3–17 °C

2–4 °C: 30 records
4–6 °C: 99 records
6–8 °C: 41 records
8–10 °C: 676 records
10–12 °C: 22 records
12–14 °C: 27 records
14–16 °C: 5 records
16–18 °C: 10 records

Names and classification

English: Giant grenadier, Pectoral rattail, Alaska blackfish, giant grenadier, giant rattail, pectoral rattail

Names in 2 more languages

French: grenadier pectoral
Japanese: ムネダラ

Other scientific names: Chalinura pectoralis, Coryphaenoides pectoralis, Dolloa pectoralis, Macrurus magnus, Macrurus pectoralis, Nematonurus pectoralis

Similar species

Victory Whiptail
Asthenomacrurus victoris
Spearnose Whiptail
Coelorinchus acutirostris
Silver whiptail
Coelorinchus argentatus
Coelorinchus argus
Coelorinchus cingulatus
Coelorinchus commutabilis

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
2,076 open-data records from 1889 to 2023.
Species data updated October 27, 2026.

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