Glowingfish

Neoscopelus macrolepidotus

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth423–975 m
Water temperature6–29 °C
Best monthsMay, August, and December
How commonOccasional

About this species

Neoscopelus macrolepidotus, also known as a large-scaled lantern fish, is a species of small mesopelagic or bathypelagic fish of the family Neoscopelidae, which contains six species total along three genera. The family Neoscopelidae is one of the two families of the order Myctophiformes. Neoscopelidae can be classified by the presence of an adipose fin. The presence of photophores, or light-producing organs, further classify the species into the genus Neoscopelus. N. macrolepidotus tends to be mesopelagic until the individuals become large adults, which is when they settle down to the bathypelagic zone.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Neoscopelus macrolepidotus”, 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: 16 records
February: 19 records
March: 18 records
April: 56 records
May: 77 records
June: 33 records
July: 17 records
August: 59 records
September: 35 records
October: 50 records
November: 34 records
December: 63 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 423–975 m · Deepest record: 1,590 m

0–10 m: 3 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: 1 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 0 records
110+ m: 396 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 6–29 °C

4–6 °C: 2 records
6–8 °C: 24 records
8–10 °C: 0 records
10–12 °C: 2 records
12–14 °C: 3 records
14–16 °C: 4 records
16–18 °C: 16 records
18–20 °C: 31 records
20–22 °C: 130 records
22–24 °C: 26 records
24–26 °C: 104 records
26–28 °C: 51 records
28–30 °C: 32 records

Names and classification

English: Glowingfish, blackchin, glowingfish, Large-scaled lantern fish, Large-scaled Lantern-fish, Largescaled Neoscopelid, Largescale Neoscopelid, Largescale New Lanternfish

Names in 2 more languages

French: lanterne à grandes écailles
Japanese: Sotoriiwashi, ソトオリイワシ

Other scientific names: Neoscopelus alcocki, Neoscopelus bruuni, Scopelus macrolepidotus

Similar species

Shortfin Blackchin
Neoscopelus microchir
Spangleside Neoscopelid
Neoscopelus porosus
Solivomer arenidens

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).
800 open-data records from 1863 to 2025.
Species data updated October 30, 2026.

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