Sandfish

Pigmented brown dorsally and orange-pink ventrally; fins have dark gray patches contrasting with pale gray patches at the margins. Lower lip of mouth with elongated forked papillae. Lateral line pore tubes positioned between every 2 scales instead of the common pattern of 2:1:2 (Ref. 38037). Caudal vertebrae (= pleural caudal vertebrae + ural caudal vertebrae) 12 + 1. Lateral line scale pattern of 2:2:2 (that is, 2 scales: pore, 2 scales: pore, etc.)

Oceanodromous. Migrating within oceans typically between spawning and different feeding areas, as tunas do. Migrations should be cyclical and predictable and cover more than 100 km.

Dorsal soft rays (total): 10 - 11; Analsoft rays: 7 - 8; Vertebrae: 64 - 66

Inhabits coastal sandy habitats , bays and estuaries where they remain buried during the day. Also found in deeper water 160-678 m. Juvenile, subadult and adult occur in shallow coastal areas; adults also inhabit deep shelf and slope areas and isolated offshore plateaus, and are capable of moving between the two (Ref. 48492). With the first New Caledonian record based on one ripe female and one spent male, captured at 960-1233 m depth, over 700 nautical miles from the nearest known populations, it is hypothesized that adult sandfish migrates along oceanic ridges to spawn in southern New Caledonian waters (Ref. 48492).