Giant oarfish

King of Herrings
1985 illustration of Regalecus glesne
Conservation status
NE
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Lampriformes
Family:	Regalecidae
Genus:	Regalecus
Species:	R. glesne
Binomial name
Regalecus glesne Ascanius, 1772

The king of herrings or Giant Oarfish, Regalecus glesne, an oarfish of the family Regalecidae, is found in all the world's oceans, at depths of between 66 feet and 1000 feet. Its total length can reach 39 feet (12 m), and it can weigh up to 600 pounds (270 kg). The rarely seen king of herrings is the world's longest bony fish.

References

• Glover, C.J.M. in Gomon, M.F, J.C.M. Glover & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
• Olney, J.E. Ii Paxton, J.R. & W.N. Eschmeyer (Eds). 1994. Encyclopedia of Fishes. Sydney: New South Wales University Press; San Diego: Academic Press [1995]. Pp. 240.
• Bourton, J. Giant bizarre deep sea fish filmed in Gulf of Mexico BBC News 8 February 2010.

External links

• Regalecus glesne at FishBase
• "Giant oarfish" at the Encyclopedia of Life
• Magazine picture