Notacanthus sexspinis

Fish
IUCN: Not evaluated

Usual depth481–1,020 m
Water temperature8–29 °C
Best monthsJanuary
How commonCommon

About this species

The spiny-back eel, Notacanthus sexspinis, is a deep-sea spiny eel of the genus Notacanthus, found in all the Southern Hemisphere oceans at depths between 500 and 1,000 m. The length of this fish is up to 60 cm (24 in).

Text from the Wikipedia article “Spiny-back eel”, 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: 188 records
February: 108 records
March: 16 records
April: 26 records
May: 32 records
June: 23 records
July: 41 records
August: 64 records
September: 27 records
October: 20 records
November: 22 records
December: 40 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 481–1,020 m · Deepest record: 3,821.5 m

160–170 m: 1 records
170–180 m: 2 records
180–190 m: 1 records
190–200 m: 0 records
200–210 m: 1 records
210–220 m: 1 records
220–230 m: 4 records
230–240 m: 3 records
240–250 m: 1 records
250–260 m: 1 records
260–270 m: 1 records
270+ m: 5,781 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 8–29 °C

6–8 °C: 14 records
8–10 °C: 141 records
10–12 °C: 140 records
12–14 °C: 212 records
14–16 °C: 259 records
16–18 °C: 114 records
18–20 °C: 23 records
20–22 °C: 29 records
22–24 °C: 2 records
24–26 °C: 0 records
26–28 °C: 0 records
28–30 °C: 1 records

Names and classification

Other scientific names: Gigliolia moseleyi, Notacanthus annectens, Notacanthus moseleyi, Notacanthus sexpinnis, Notacanthus sexspinus, Notocanthus sexspinnis

Similar species

Snubnosed spiny eel
Notacanthus chemnitzii
Abbott's spiny eel
Notacanthus abbotti
Backfin tapirfish
Lipogenys gillii

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).
6,169 open-data records from 1965 to 2019.
Species data updated November 5, 2026.

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