Boarfish

Cold and temperate sea fish

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Identity card

Boarfish

Scientific name:: Capros aper

Family:: Caproidae

Class:: Actinopterygii

Phylum:: Chordata

Year of description:: Linnaeus, 1758

IUCN Status:: Least Concern

CITES-status:: Not evaluated

Distribution:: Eastern Atlantic Ocean, from Norway to Senegal and in the Mediterranean, mainly the western part.

Habitat:: Between depths of 40 and 700 m

Size:: 13 cm on average and up to 30 cm

Diet:: Crustaceans (copepods, shrimps, etc.), worms, molluscs

At Nausicaá, longspine snipefish and boarfish live in the same tank in the exhibition.

Juveniles feed on plankton and remain in open waters. When they reach 4 cm in size, they resemble adult fish and move closer to the substrate.

The Longspine Snipefish Macroramphosus scolopax is found in the same biotopes as the boarfish.

Did you know?

Where is the animal to be found?

It lives above rocky or sandy bottoms and can be found at depths of between 40 and 700 metres.

How can it be recognised?

The boarfish or Capros aper owes its name to its snout, which is reminiscent of the mammal. On its laterally compressed, oval-shaped body, it has ctenoid scales, i.e. with fine, hard points that make them very rough. It also has large eyes with red irises.

They are pink-orange in colour and males may have darker vertical stripes, whereas females will have a lighter coloured abdomen. Juveniles have red marks on their dorsal and pectoral fins.

What is distinctive about it?

It was accidentally introduced into the Gulf of Mexico. According to some sources, it was carried in the water tanks of ships.It is now considered an invasive species: its proliferation is responsible for the decrease in fish larvae and eggs.