Grenadiers of the World Oceans: Biology, Stock Assessment, and Fisheries

Grenadiers in the Demersal Community off Northern and Central Chile

Enzo Acuña, Alex Cortés, and María Teresa Cabrera

doi: https://doi.org/10.47886/9781934874004.ch10

Abstract.—Eight species of grenadiers are captured in the fisheries for the demersal squat lobsters Cervimunida johni and Pleuroncodes monodon and deep sea shrimp Heterocarpus reedi in northern and central Chilean waters (21°34–38°29S and 70–617 m depth): Coelorinchus aconcagua, C. chilensis, C. fasciatus, Coryphaenoides delsolari, Lucigadus nigromaculatus, Nezumia pulchella, Trachyrincus helolepis and T. villegai. Several species were caught beyond their previously known geographical range in Chile, including C. aconcagua (north to 21°34’S), N. pulchella (south to 35°41’S), and T. helolepis (south to 38°29’S). In general, frequency of occurrence and size of the different species showed an increase with depth, suggesting that there may be larger size classes at depths greater than those of the crustacean fisheries. The sex ratio of several species changed with depth, showing that females and juveniles tend to occupy the entire bathymetric range analyzed, whereas males frequented deeper waters.