Hatchetfish

Argyropelecus olfersii

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth155–1,289 m
Water temperature5–28 °C
Best monthsSeptember
How commonOccasional

All species

About this species

Argyropelecus olfersii is a common species of marine hatchetfish, found in mesopelagic waters.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Argyropelecus olfersii”, 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: 0 records
February: 2 records
March: 9 records
April: 59 records
May: 85 records
June: 68 records
July: 41 records
August: 10 records
September: 167 records
October: 54 records
November: 28 records
December: 8 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 155–1,289 m · Deepest record: 4,475 m

0–10 m: 14 records
10–20 m: 3 records
20–30 m: 0 records
30–40 m: 0 records
40–50 m: 0 records
50–60 m: 6 records
60–70 m: 0 records
70–80 m: 2 records
80–90 m: 3 records
90–100 m: 1 records
100–110 m: 17 records
110+ m: 604 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 5–28 °C

4–6 °C: 1 records
6–8 °C: 7 records
8–10 °C: 39 records
10–12 °C: 134 records
12–14 °C: 314 records
14–16 °C: 128 records
16–18 °C: 55 records
18–20 °C: 9 records
20–22 °C: 7 records
22–24 °C: 9 records
24–26 °C: 4 records
26–28 °C: 6 records

Names and classification

English: Hatchetfish, Silver hatchetfish

Names in 3 more languages

German: Silberbeil
Spanish: Hachita, Pez Hacha, Pez hacha luminoso
French: Hache d’argent commune

Other scientific names: Argyropelachus olfersi, Argyropelecus olfersi, Pleurothyris olfersii, Sternoptyx olfersii

Similar species

Half-naked hatchet fish
Argyropelecus hemigymnus
Atlantic silver hatchetfish
Argyropelecus aculeatus
Pacific hatchet fish
Argyropelecus affinis
Greater silver hatchetfish
Argyropelecus gigas
Silvery hatchetfish
Argyropelecus lychnus
Lowcrest hachetfish
Argyropelecus sladeni

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).
1,169 open-data records from 1910 to 2024.

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