Belted lanternfish

Electrona paucirastra

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth12–780 m
Water temperature-1–16 °C
Best monthsApril
How commonRare

Photo credit: (c) Dr Tony Ayling, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist

About this species

Electrona paucirastra, the belted lanternfish, is a lanternfish found around the globe in the southern hemisphere between 35° S and 48° S. It grows to a length of 7.0 centimetres (2.8 in) SL. It is a mesopelagic species, which can be found close to surface at night-time.

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

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

Loading the map

Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 0 records
February: 5 records
March: 11 records
April: 22 records
May: 8 records
June: 4 records
July: 3 records
August: 1 records
September: 8 records
October: 6 records
November: 2 records
December: 10 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 12–780 m · Deepest record: 1,600 m

0–10 m: 4 records
10–20 m: 4 records
20–30 m: 0 records
30–40 m: 1 records
40–50 m: 5 records
50–60 m: 4 records
60–70 m: 0 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 5 records
110+ m: 29 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of -1–16 °C

-2–0 °C: 1 records
0–2 °C: 0 records
2–4 °C: 14 records
4–6 °C: 0 records
6–8 °C: 3 records
8–10 °C: 9 records
10–12 °C: 22 records
12–14 °C: 18 records
14–16 °C: 20 records

Names and classification

English: Belted lanternfish

Names in 1 more languages

French: Lanternule de convergence

Similar species

Electric lantern fish
Electrona risso
Carlsberg's Lanternfish
Electrona carlsbergi
Rough lanternfish
Electrona subaspera
Warming's lantern fish
Ceratoscopelus warmingii
Dogtooth lampfish
Ceratoscopelus townsendi
Atlantic Lanternfish
Diogenichthys atlanticus

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).
165 open-data records from 1939 to 2020.
Species data updated November 2, 2026.

Log what you see on your next dive

The free DiveHive diver app keeps your logbook with every sighting and shows what lives at the site you dive next.

Join the waitlist