Recipe: Fried chimera - or homemade hare fish. European chimera

Like a hare fish. If you are interested in knowing what this is sea creature, then this article is for you. We will discuss whether there are benefits from this fish. We will also find out whether it poses any harm to the human body.

To see this fish in full, you need to consult a reference book. The point is that she is not sold head on. You can only purchase fragments of its fish body, so to speak. They are sold in purified form. Therefore, it is very difficult to understand what kind of fish it is in its original form. There is a lot of deception on fish counters. Since the hare fish is often passed off as a simple hake or pollock. The cod-like little fish are similar to our marine species.

Sharks use their ears to find food. Sharks are able to detect small electrical impulses in the water. This meaning can be very useful because all animals produce an electrical signal certain type. This allows them to detect movements in the water from hundreds of meters away. Because they capture electrical signals generated by prey, they can detect the movements of other animals. The sixth sense exists thanks to electroreceptive organs called ampullae of Lorenzini, which were discovered not so long ago.

These bubbles are pores filled with gelatin. They are located around the head, with greater concentration near the snout, and are connected to the brain by nerve endings. Basically, bubbles are detectors electric field. Each Living being produces an electric field that sharks can perceive.

What is hare fish?

This fish is cartilaginous. She doesn't have a bubble. Therefore, in order to stay afloat, she constantly needs to be on the move. Like the shark, this fish will otherwise simply fall to the seabed. Hare is prepared like any other fish. It needs to be salted, then coated with flour or batter, and then fried in a hot frying pan.

Oddly enough, sometimes sharks attack metal objects. This behavior is due to the fact that in the sea, metals emit electrical signals that make mining possible. Sharks can not only detect their prey, but also a diver or possible hunter without even seeing them.

The skin is made up of very small structures called dermal denticles. They are formed by the basal plate of bone. The dermal denticles have important functions both to reduce exhaustion during swimming and noise caused by the movement of the shark itself, as well as a protective function. As the animal grows, the dermal denticles grow in number rather than in size and are important in identifying different species.

Some sources indicate that this fish emits bad smell. But that's not true. Although the smell of hare is not as pleasant as the smell of cod, it does not stink obnoxiously. The taste of the finished fish is simply amazing. IN ordinary fish there are bones in the same cartilage. Thanks to this structure, fish meat is very easy to separate using cutlery.

Most shark species grow very slowly and take many years to reach sexual maturity. Sharks have a fairly long reproductive cycle, ranging from one to two years, as well as their gestation period. Gestation lasts three to four months for small species and up to two years or more for large sharks. Its birth rate is low compared to other fish, which can produce thousands to millions of eggs. 70% of sharks are born alive: they are viviparous or ovoid. The remaining 30% of egg production, i.e. lay eggs.

The embryo grows inside the egg and leaves only when it is fully developed. Ovoviviparity: Embryos develop inside an egg in the mother's uterus. They do not feed on the placenta, but on a fluid called the yolk, which is contained in the yolk sac. The embryo feeds yolk sac until it is exposed to light from the mother.

The fetus is nourished through the mother's blood through the umbilical cord.
Oviparatic: the mother seals the egg in a collagen capsule.
These capsules are important because you protect them from predators.
The mother releases the eggs into the sea, entangling them with algae or coral.

Sharks are distributed in all seas and oceans of the world, with the exception of the Arctic and Antarctic.

Benefits and harms

Distrust of our fish is caused by the fact that it is considered an exotic product, and many people know absolutely nothing about it. In fact, hare fish meat is very nutritious and juicy. This fish was not considered suitable for consumption until the twentieth century. Now it is a rare delicacy in many expensive restaurants around the world.

There are species of sharks that live in tropical waters, and others that live in temperate and cold waters. Photo 2: Distribution of sharks in the world. Rays are cartilaginous fish and are closely related to sharks. The main part of the body is very smooth both above and below. The pectoral fins are attached to the back of the skull to form a body disc.

They have a small tail and are not used for swimming. Movement is produced by the limbs pectoral fins, but most lack dorsal and caudal fins. The eyes are located at the top. Foundation objects locate them thanks to the olfactory system developed in the lateral line and electroreceptors.

She's very helpful. It contains quite a lot of protein, which is easily and quickly absorbed by the human body. It also contains a lot of vitamins such as A, E, and D. Moreover, this fish is filled with useful minerals. Since fish contains a large number of fatty acids, its meat is considered particularly nutritious. The calorie content of fish is such that for one hundred grams of its meat there are one hundred and sixteen kcal.

To breathe, the rays do not enter the water through the mouth, but through spiracles located behind the eyes. The gill slits are located on the lower surface. . The skin of the rays is formed, like that of sharks, by dermal denticles, which allow them to have better hydrodynamism.

The rays that protect themselves have poisonous bites, electrical organs. These animals have two organs called electroplates located on either side of the head. Electrical boards do not recharge immediately and can therefore take anywhere from a few minutes to several days.

The rays' venom is produced by glandular tissue arranged in two parallel grooves located behind the bite, which is usually proportional to the size of the line. There are stripes in almost all the world's seas; they are marine animals par excellence. They usually live near the coast. These animals are born near the coast and as they grow they move into deeper waters, especially in winter.

Is there any harm from eating this fish? You can only suffer if you are personally intolerant of this marine product. Our hare also has a poisonous fin. This is the top fin. Because of this, fish carcasses should be separated with extreme caution. The fish is quite oily. It should not be abused.

additional information

The fish has expressive eyes. Apparently, this is the reason that she was given such a name as a hare. But she is nothing more like an ordinary hare. Because the fish lead unusual image life, they are sometimes called the rats of the seas. They feed on solid foods such as shellfish or crayfish. The fish's jaws are very powerful, so fishermen are very careful with this fish. The hare lays eggs. Scandinavians eat these eggs.

They lie on the ground, and sometimes they bury themselves in the sand; they remain motionless for a long time, thus preserving the possibility of eventual prey. The stripes move due to the wavy or vertical movements of the pectoral fins.

They are covered with a viscous layer that smoothes out body irregularities, reducing surface tension and friction during movement. Also, like sharks, they lack a swim bladder, but thanks to their pectoral fins they avoid diving. This feature eliminates the need to have a developed liver to improve buoyancy.

The price issue is not certain. The cost of fish fluctuates. In general, hare fish costs a little more than regular cod. But you won’t find our fish in every store. More chances to find this delicacy in special stores exotic marine products. The hare fish is also of the aquarium type. It is decorative and is not consumed as food. This kind of fish is very expensive.

The most primitive fish among them are cartilaginous fish. Fossil evidence suggests that they were once an abundant and highly diverse order. Long ago they were related to sharks, although their evolutionary line split 400 million years ago and they have remained an isolated group ever since.

Characteristics of chimeras

Photo 4: Image of the depth chimera. Like sharks, chimeras do not have bones, but cartilage. Its skin is soft and consists of placoid scales. The lateral lines that cross the body of chimeras are mechano-receptive organs that detect pressure waves. In the frontal part of the face there are some lines formed by points called ampullae of Lorenzini, which detect electrical signals generated by living beings.

It is believed that sellers sell fish much higher than the stated price. They can invent their own names for hare fish to show it as rarer and expensive fish. Some even sell tasteless fish with tough meat, passing it off as a chimera. It is easy to fall for such deception.

The fact that the fish has a rather funny nickname. This suggests that it is not extremely rare. Abroad, it is found in many restaurants. You shouldn’t be afraid and believe all the nonsense about hare fish that you can find in various sources. This fish is healthy, tasty, and not very expensive.

Reproduction of chimeras we can say that the males do not have a penis, but other very interesting genital organs. Like sharks, chimeras also have flower stalks which they use to grasp the female and have grooves to guide sperm. Chimeras have direct development, meaning they hatch in the mother's body and emerge as small fish.

What is the ecological role of sharks in the seas?

For example, white sharks are very important from an ecological point of view because they have direct control over the populations of tuna, seals, turtles, dolphins, sea lions. They also have another one important function cleaners because they feed on dead whales and pilot whales and help process organic matter so that it can be used by other organisms.

If you have a chance to try the meat of this fish, do not deny yourself this pleasure. Be sure to try this one. Its taste is reminiscent of shark meat. Therefore, not everyone will like it as a main course. So, now you know what hare fish is. You know why it is useful and whether it can be dangerous. You have everything necessary information about our exotic fish. You know that hare fish can be a great addition to your overall diet.

In short, sharks influence their composition, helping to preserve biodiversity. Every year, millions of sharks are killed in addition to accidental catches, especially a truly absurd practice called shark finning: after being captured with their owner, they board a boat and cut off the dorsal and lateral fins. They are then thrown into the sea, still alive, unable to breathe or swim, they flood and die very slowly.

All this is yet to be done due to the demand for shark soup, which has no nutritional value and no taste, especially in Asian countries such as China. Species that survive uncontrolled fishing cannot reproduce quickly enough to compensate for the number of sharks killed. This situation threatens the balance of marine ecosystems around the world. Sharks are important predators characterized by sea life over 400 million years old and important to the health of the planet.

Recipe (video)

Fish lovers are divided into two camps: some claim that the chimera is inedible, and the second claim that it produces excellent dishes. Be that as it may, the sea rabbit (this is another name for a chimera, along with the sea hare) can now often be seen on store shelves. The fish was called a chimera for its eerie appearance: it has no beautiful head and a very long lower fin. Apparently because it's scary appearance The carcasses of this fish are sold already cleaned. We bought one of these and decided to experiment. Chimera in the oven with vegetables it turned out very tasty!

Diving with sharks, blankets and rays or watching sharks in an aquarium

One way to get close to these animals is by diving or observing in aquariums. Another way to observe sharks is in aquariums, where in addition to sharks, other marine animals can be observed. In aquariums, behavior can also be modified, but given the inability to submerge, they are a great option.

Animals often camouflage themselves to deceive their predators. Inevitably, when you talk about camouflage, you have colors and textures. Think of the white hare that gets tangled up in the snow, those insects that look like leaves or branches, or that owl that has no one to find but that wakes you up every day at five o'clock in the morning.

Ingredients:

sea rabbit carcass – 1 piece;

carrots – 1 piece;

onion – 1 piece;

salt - to taste;

seasonings for fish - to taste;

lemon – ½ piece;

vegetable oil - a few tablespoons.

Cooking chimera in the oven.

Take the required amount of ingredients.

But there are several other types of camouflage. There is, for example, sound camouflage. Some moths are capable of emitting ultrasounds that are misleading bats, when they try to detect them using the eco-localization system. There is also chemical camouflage, like the one used by the protagonist of our story: fish.

This fish lives in Australian waters, in an ecosystem rich in corals, from which it usually feeds. At the same time he swallows and processes chemical compounds from corals, some of which are responsible for its smell. Thanks to various mechanisms, the fish uses these substances and manages to smell the corals. This gives it a huge adaptive advantage as it allows it to hide from its predators, who cannot tell the difference between fish and coral.

Let's start with: before putting them in the oven together with the fish, the carrots and onions need to be stewed. Therefore, we peel the carrots and grate them on a coarse grater. Place a frying pan on the fire, pour a little on the bottom vegetable oil and add grated carrots.

While the carrots are stewing, peel the white onion (it has a much more delicate taste than regular white onions), cut into half rings and also add to the frying pan. Mix the vegetables, add salt, add a few tablespoons of water and cover with a lid. Simmer until fully cooked, stirring occasionally.

Some moths are capable of emitting misleading ultrasounds. the bats. Researchers studied this phenomenon using two different methods. First, they placed the 007 fish and corals at the ends of the tank. They threw a crab in the middle of it that feeds on the same coral as ours secret agent, and they closed their eyes. The poor crab was disoriented and didn't know where to go. The two ends of the pool smelled of a delicious and precious delicacy, poor man. About half the time, the experiment ended with free tea for the crab.

Now let's get to the fish. There is one short fin on the carcass - we cut it off with scissors. The chimera itself looks beautiful: it has speckled silver sides.

Cut the fish into pieces 2-3 centimeters thick.

But the other half turned out to be an elusive character that, unfortunately, was not edible for him. Conclusion: the smell of fish is indistinguishable from the smell of coral, even for a demanding gourmet. On the other hand, they did a similar experiment by placing a fish near a coral and releasing a cod, the deadly archaemia of our fish 007. The cod was unable to find its prey, perfectly camouflaged among the corals. However, if 007 hid in a different coral than the one that usually serves breakfast, the cod ended up being chased.

Chemical camouflage has been known for some time. However, the study authors emphasize that this is the first time diet-based chemical camouflage has been observed in a vertebrate. This has been seen as similar in caterpillars, which survive ant attacks using a similar strategy.

Pour salt and fish seasonings into a small bowl. Mix them and rub each piece of fish with this mixture. While the vegetables are stewing, the fish will be marinated in spices. To enhance the effect, you can even put it in the refrigerator during this time.

If the carrots are already ready, you can take a baking dish and put the vegetables into it. Additionally, there is no need to grease the pan with oil, because the fat will transfer along with the carrots and onions.

Place sea rabbit pieces on top of the vegetables. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon onto the fish.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, place the dish with the fish in it and bake for 20 minutes.
Chimera fish in the oven is ready! It should be served hot. Would be an excellent side dish mashed potatoes or boiled rice. In a similar way, you can bake a chimera without carrots - only with onions.

The most mysterious inhabitants ocean depths- chimera-like fish, or chimeras. Very little is known about their lifestyle, especially their reproductive biology.

Oceanologists literally collected information about these creatures bit by bit, so that today we could get to know some of them.

Science knows very little about chimeras.

Deep-sea chimeras of the seas and oceans

The modern group, belonging to the cartilaginous order, includes approximately 50 species of chimera-like fish. Most of them live at a depth of 500 meters or more, where it is extremely difficult and sometimes simply impossible to study their behavior. Today it is known that:

the length of these creatures can reach 1.5 meters;
they feed on invertebrates and smaller fish;
fish are dioecious;
fish lay eggs.
Chimera fish live exclusively in sea water.

Appearance and structure

The streamlined body of chimeras gradually narrows and ends in a long, writhing, cord-like tail half the length of the body. It is called whip-shaped. Adults grow from 0.6 to 1.5 meters. It is possible that there are fish and bigger size.

Adult chimera fish reach 1.5 meters

The pectoral fins are large and wing-shaped. They are the ones who give chimeras their characteristic appearance and create the illusion of flight. The abdominal ones are much smaller in size and are located near the anus.

Fish swim slowly, the movements of the pectoral fins are wave-like.

The lateral line is open and is a groove located on the sides of the head and body. With its help, chimeras perceive water vibrations and vibrations created by the movement of other inhabitants of the depths. The line is used for orientation in external environment and during the hunt. In some species it consists of a part of special receptors that detect electrical vibrations.

Chimeras swim slowly

The body is “naked”, covered with mucus. The skeleton consists of cartilage tissue. The skull is connected to the jaws by one joint and is called hyostylous. On the sides there are two gill openings covered with skin folds. Fish breathe with their mouths closed, drawing in water through their nostrils. It enters the gills, which communicate with the oral cavity.

There are also two dorsal fins. The one closer to the head is set vertically, it has a short base and a large spine - in some it is poisonous. If necessary, it fits into a special “groove” on the back. The other is shorter with a long base and does not fold.

The mouth is downward positioned and full of creepy chewing plates. Males have pterygopodia - copulatory organs. With their help, seminal fluid is introduced into the female's cloaca.

Once on land, chimera-like fish die very quickly. They take root extremely poorly in aquarium conditions.

Fertilization and reproduction

In dioecious chimeras insemination occurs during mating. All species of the order Chimaeras are characterized by oviparity - laying eggs. The embryo develops and is released from the membranes outside the mother's body.

The female’s ovaries can contain up to 100 eggs at a time, but they mature and lay two at a time.

Each egg of chimeras, like some other species of fish, is enclosed in a capsule - a cartilaginous shell. It is equipped with a thread-like appendage. After leaving the female's body, the egg falls to the bottom or gets caught on plants.

The development of the embryo lasts about 9-12 months. Interestingly, during development, special filaments appear at the head - external gills. It is likely that with their help the embryo absorbs the yolk of the egg and receives oxygen. After birth, the threads disappear. The hatched fry are similar to their parents in everything.

Chimeras reproduce by laying eggs.

Cartilage shells are very light and consist of collagen threads. Empty capsules quite often end up in fishermen's nets and are washed ashore during storms and high tides. People call such finds mermaid or devil purses.

ABOUT mating games and the mating process, very little is known, since studying this side of the life of chimeras on great depth very problematic.

Estimated diet

Traditionally, it was believed that chimeras feed only on solid food - mollusks and crustaceans. This opinion was formed due to the structure of the jaw apparatus, which is capable of crushing a hunted object with a force of 100 Newton.

Direct studies, although few in number, suggest that the diet of chimeras includes:

polychaetes - polychaete worms;
crabs;
crayfish;
lobsters;
shrimps;
small bottom fish.

Chimeras have cases of cannibalism

There are known cases of cannibalism when chimeras ate not only eggs, but also adult representatives of their small species.

Many representatives of chimaeras have special devices for attracting prey - photophores. They are located near the mouth and glow in the dark. The food itself floats directly into the predator’s mouth.

There are practically no natural enemies due to the deep-sea lifestyle. Close relatives are sharks and rays.

The most famous representatives of chimaeras

The Chimera genus consists of 6 species. Among them are the most studied. These include the European and Cuban chimeras, the family Collarhynchidae and Rhinochimeraceae.

Information about them is in many encyclopedias, but they are scarce and full of assumptions.

European (Chimaera monstrosa) and Cuban (Ch. cubana)

Range: Eastern Atlantic. Reaches a length of 1.5 meters. The back is red-brown, the sides are silver with yellow-brown spots. Eyes are green. The fins have a black-brown border along the edges.

Chimera habitat: Eastern Atlantic

It is found at a depth of 200−500 meters, off the coast of Morocco up to 700 meters. Single individuals are caught in the network, but in the spring there are richer catches off the coast of Norway - up to several dozen pieces. Other names are chimera hare, sea rabbit or rat.

Eggs are laid all year round, with the exception of the autumn months.

The European chimera is not eaten. Fat is used to lubricate wounds.

The habitat of the Cuban Chimera is the coast of Cuba, the waters of Japan, the Yellow Sea and the Philippine Islands. Outwardly similar to the European one, that’s why it was previously mistaken for it. The depth of residence is 400−500 meters.

Chimeras are found at a depth of 200 m

Genus Hydrolagus

There are 15-16 species. Habitat: North Atlantic, Japan, Australian waters, South Africa, New Zealand, Philippines, Hawaiian Islands and North America.

The American hydrolag has been studied better than others. He often found along the American coast and lives at a depth of only 40−60 meters.

It is smaller than the European chimera and sometimes completely fills fishermen's nets. It breeds all year round, most intensively in August-September.

Observations in the aquarium showed that the female marks capsules for approximately 30 hours. They do not separate immediately and hang on elastic threads for several days, dragging behind them. Then they fall off and sink to the bottom.

Fish is not eaten, and the fat is used for technical lubrication of mechanical parts.

Chimeras are not used as food.

Nosed chimeras

They belong to the Rhinochimeraceae family. The snout is elongated and pointed. Pterygopodia in males are entire. These are the deepest representatives - presumably they live at a depth of up to 2.5 km. Known only from rare finds on the shore. Biology has not been studied.

Family Callorhynchaceae

The proboscis family is represented by only one genus - Collarynchi. The front part of the muzzle is extended into a trunk, flattened on the sides. At the end there is a leaf-shaped blade, bent back. Presumably, this organ serves as a kind of locator. Lives in the waters of the Southern Hemisphere.

The color is greenish-yellow, with three black stripes on the sides. Tail without a thin ending.

Off the coast of New Zealand it is mined in industrial scale, used for food. The taste is excellent, but as soon as the meat sits for a little while without processing, the smell of ammonia appears.

Chimeras are still little studied, so major discoveries are yet to come.

Fish lovers are divided into two camps: some claim that the chimera is inedible, and others claim that it makes excellent dishes. Be that as it may, the sea rabbit (this is another name for a chimera, along with the sea hare) can now often be seen on store shelves. The fish was called a chimera for its eerie appearance: it has an unattractive head and a very long lower fin. Apparently, due to the scary appearance, the carcasses of this fish are sold already cleaned. We bought one of these and decided to experiment. Chimera in the oven with vegetables it turned out very tasty!

Ingredients:

sea rabbit carcass- 1 piece;

carrots – 1 piece;

onion – 1 piece;

salt - to taste;

seasonings for fish- taste;

lemon – ½ piece;

vegetable oil– a few spoons.

Cooking chimera in the oven.

Take the required amount of ingredients.

Let's start with: before putting them in the oven together with the fish, the carrots and onions need to be stewed. Therefore, we peel the carrots and grate them on a coarse grater. Place a frying pan on the fire, pour a little vegetable oil on the bottom and lay out the grated carrots.

Now let's get to the fish. There is one short fin on the carcass - we cut it off with scissors. The chimera itself looks beautiful: it has speckled silver sides.

Cut the fish into pieces 2-3 centimeters thick.

Place sea rabbit pieces on top of the vegetables. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon onto the fish.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, place the dish with the fish in it and bake for 20 minutes.
Chimera fish in the oven is ready! It should be served hot. An excellent side dish would be mashed potatoes or boiled rice. In a similar way, you can bake a chimera without carrots - only with onions.

How different and unusual fish exist in nature, and what names have not been invented for them! For example, the chimera fish: the very name of this animal evokes not the most pleasant associations. And if you look at this inhabitant depths of the sea, then opinions may be divided. Some see a very cute and cute fish that looks like a soaring bird, while others see a monster. So who is she really, this mysterious sea dweller, which is also called by another strange name - fish sea hare.

Very close relatives of the chimera are and: they are all cartilaginous fish and have a backbone made of cartilaginous tissue. Look at the photo of the chimera fish and try to find common features with sharks!

All the most interesting things about chimeras

When the name chimera is mentioned, it does not mean that there is only one single species. The genus Chimaera (lat. Chimaera) unites 6 species, of which the most famous is the European chimera (lat. Chimaera monstrosa) from the eastern Atlantic. There is a Cuban chimera (Chimaera cubana), which was first mistaken for European, but was later identified as independent species. It lives off the coast of Cuba at a depth of 400-500 meters. Other species of the genus Chimera are known from the waters of the eastern regions Pacific Ocean(Philippine Islands, Yellow Sea and Japanese Islands).

Place of chimeras in the fish system

The genus Chimera, of which the European chimera is a representative, is included in the family Chimaeridae, in which there is another genus with species that differ from the genus Chimera in the shape of the caudal fin.

All fish of the Chimaera family have a blunt snout. This is an important difference from other families of the Chimaeriformes order, including the family. Nosed chimeras with a very elongated snout and a pointed one at the end. And the third family is the proboscis-snouted chimeras (Callorhynchaceae). They are distinguished by the elongated and bent down and back of the front end of the snout.

Below, in the photo, chimera fish are depicted in drawings, and you can see the differences in the structure of the snout in representatives of each family, which were mentioned above.

Representatives of the order Chimera: 1 - fam. Chimaeras; 2 - sem. Proboscis snouts (Callorhynchaceae) and fam. Nosed chimeras.

As already mentioned at the beginning of the article, the chimera fish is cartilaginous, and accordingly, belongs to the class “Cartilaginous fish,” which has two subclasses. Having a lot in common in the internal and external structure with elasmobranchs (sharks and rays), chimeras differ from them in that their upper jaw is completely fused with the skull. Therefore, they are classified into the subclass Whole-headed or Joint-skulled.

Appearance of chimaeras

All chimaeras have characteristic shape body: valval, slightly compressed laterally and very thin towards the tail. The photo shows a sea hare fish ( European chimera) this is clearly visible.

Other features of the appearance of chimera representatives:

There are two fins on the back, the first is tall and short, having a powerful spike in front, which together with it, if necessary, fits into a special groove in the back. The second is long and can stretch all the way to the base of the caudal fin and does not fold.
The caudal fin is often shaped like a long cord.
The pectoral fins are very well developed and each of them is shaped like a fan.
The pelvic fins are smaller than the pectoral fins and are located next to the anus, being pushed back.
At the base, all paired fins are equipped with fleshy blades, thin and flexible.
The lower mouth (lower) of chimeras has a characteristic three-lobed upper lip.
The gill openings located on the sides of the head are covered by a fold of skin supported by finger-like cartilages.
The naked body, devoid of placoid scales, is covered big amount mucus.

Spine in the first dorsal fin of a European chimera.

European chimeras - beauties or beasts?

The European chimera has the Latin name Chimaera monstrosa, which evokes associations with some kind of monster. This fish has many names; one of the names that the chimera fish bears is the hare. This may be due to the large, slightly elongated pectoral fins and huge eyes. It is also called fish sea rabbit, apparently for the same reasons.

And among the Norwegians, the chimera is a royal fish. It is called so because of the thin bony growth curved backwards, which is located between the eyes of males.

A stylized image of a male chimera with a bony growth between its eyes.

The body length of the European chimera can be up to one or one and a half meters, and its tail is very long and thin, so another name has been assigned to it - the sea rat.

What color is the chimera?

Rudimentary spines are sometimes found on the bare skin of the European chimera. However, the skin looks smooth and soft and has a characteristic color:

the back is in dark brown and golden shades in combination with brown and whitish, a dark brown stripe stretches along the upper part of the back;
the ventral side of the body is light;
on the back of the long dorsal fin, as well as on the tail and anus, a blackish-brown edging is noticeable.

Completes the color image of the chimera green color the pupil against the background of the white iris of her huge eyes.

European chimera, photo by Roman Fedortsov, Murmansk, @rfedortsov_official_account

Distribution, lifestyle and movement

The European chimera fish is not found in tropical waters. Its range is the eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean:

IN northern waters– from the Strait of Gibraltar ( coastal waters Morocco) to the island of Iceland and the Scandinavian Peninsula with entry into the Barents Sea.
Southern waters - near the coast of southern Africa (this information requires confirmation).

The sea hare fish spends most of its life at the bottom, so ichthyologists classify it as a bathydimersal (bottom deep-sea) fish. After all, the depth at which it can be found is from 40 to 1400 meters. But most often this species lives at relatively shallow depths: two hundred to five hundred meters (in the northernmost part of its range) and three hundred and fifty to seven hundred meters (in the waters off the coast of Morocco). By winter it comes to coastal waters, where off the coast of Norway (where the depth is from 90 to 180 meters) a number of individuals can be caught by trawls.

These fish are quite gentle and do not resist at all when caught. Once removed from the water, they die very quickly. Placed in an aquarium, they do not survive well.

Way to travel

The chimera or sea rabbit fish is not a fast and high-speed swimmer, and it does not need it. See how gracefully it moves with the eel-like curve of its rear body and tail and the undulating wing-like movements of its large pectoral fins. The pelvic fins are also involved in ensuring the swimming of the fish; they are located horizontally and act as movement stabilizers.

Being at the bottom, chimeras can “stand” on the ground, resting on almost all of their fins: the pectoral and ventral fins serve as four limbs, and the tail serves as additional support.

Nutrition issue

This part of the article is devoted to two questions:

what does sea rabbit fish eat?
Is it possible to eat chimera fish, that is, sea rabbit?

The diet of chimeras consists mainly of benthic invertebrates. Among them are mollusks, crustaceans (mainly crabs), echinoderms ( sea urchins, brittle stars). Small fish were only occasionally found in their stomachs. When examining the contents digestive tract chimeras, it was discovered that they do not swallow food whole, but bite off small pieces of prey or crush it with strong dental plates.

Do people eat chimeras?

So, is it possible to eat chimera fish? There is no definitive answer to this question. Fishing for chimaeras is carried out off the Pacific coast of the United States; they are caught in Chile and Argentina, as well as in the waters of New Zealand and China. The volume of production is especially large in New Zealand, where representatives of the family Callorhynchidae (proboscis-snouted chimeras) are caught.

Only fresh callorhynchus meat, which has excellent taste qualities. However, if it sits for even a little while, it begins to emit an unpleasant odor of ammonia. For housewives, the chimera cartilaginous fish, which has no scales or hard bones, is, of course, very convenient to prepare.

Fat is extracted from the liver of chimeras, which has long been known as an excellent wound healing agent.

The current trend towards increasing the volume of production of the European chimaera using deep-sea trawling for the purpose of production medicines from the liver oil of this fish led to the inclusion of this species in the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List. The chimera hare fish has protective status, as a species close to vulnerable.

Chimera fish

Deep waters mysterious oceans inhabit mysterious creatures. 400 million years ago, an unusual underwater inhabitant appeared - the chimera fish.

This creature is sometimes called a ghost shark. And this fish received the name chimera for its appearance. The point is that in Greek mythology There was a legend about a monstrous woman whose entire body was formed from parts of various animals. Seeing a fish with a strange appearance, the ancient Greeks decided that its body was not at all like an ordinary fish - but as if it was also made up of animal parts. That is why the chimera fish got its name.

Chimera deep sea fish

This fish belongs to the cartilaginous fish, represents the order Chimera, family Chimaera.

Among the class cartilaginous fish Chimeras were the very first to appear on our planet. They are considered distant relatives of sharks. Today, scientists have counted about 50 species of these unusual fish on our planet.

Appearance of chimera fish

The body length of an adult reaches 1.5 meters. The skin of these fish is smooth, with multi-colored tints. In males, between the eyes on the head there is a bone growth (spike) that has a curved shape.

The tail of these fish is very long, reaching a size equal to half the length of the entire body. A distinctive feature of the appearance of these representatives of the chimaera family can be called large wing-shaped lateral fins. By straightening them, the chimera becomes somewhat similar to a bird.