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Gargoyle Fish

Coelorinchus mirus

  • Fish
  • IUCN: Not evaluated
  • Usual depth232–685 m
  • Water temperature8–25 °C
  • Best monthsAugust
  • How commonOccasional
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Photo credit: (c) Dr Tony Ayling, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist

About this species

The gargoyle fish or small-eye rattail is a species of rattail found around southeast Australia and between New Zealand and the Chatham Islands.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Gargoyle fish”, 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: 9 records
  • February: 31 records
  • March: 32 records
  • April: 89 records
  • May: 41 records
  • June: 53 records
  • July: 70 records
  • August: 178 records
  • September: 88 records
  • October: 37 records
  • November: 31 records
  • December: 35 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 232–685 m · Deepest record: 1,630 m

  • 60–70 m: 1 records
  • 70–80 m: 1 records
  • 80–90 m: 0 records
  • 90–100 m: 0 records
  • 100–110 m: 0 records
  • 110–120 m: 0 records
  • 120–130 m: 1 records
  • 130–140 m: 5 records
  • 140–150 m: 9 records
  • 150–160 m: 24 records
  • 160–170 m: 9 records
  • 170+ m: 789 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 8–25 °C

  • 8–10 °C: 17 records
  • 10–12 °C: 30 records
  • 12–14 °C: 96 records
  • 14–16 °C: 42 records
  • 16–18 °C: 130 records
  • 18–20 °C: 244 records
  • 20–22 °C: 101 records
  • 22–24 °C: 50 records
  • 24–26 °C: 17 records

Names and classification

English
Gargoyle Fish, Small-eye Rattail

Other scientific names: Caelorinchus mirus, Coelorhynchus mirus

Similar species

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).
  • 1,096 open-data records from 1925 to 2015.
  • Species data updated November 1, 2026.

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