Fish of the Ichthyococcus genus of the Phosichthyidae (lightfishes) family of the Phosichthyoidei suborder of the Stomiiformes order of the Stenopterygii superorder.
(Lightfish. Photo by © Francesco Costa. fishbase.org)
Lightfish (Ichthyococcus ovatus) was first described in 1838 by the Italian naturalist Anastasio Cocco (1799-1854).
Bathypelagic species. It occurs at the depth of 0-2.500 meters, usually 200-500 meters. The maximum recorded length is 5.5 cm. It feeds on zooplankton.
(Lightfish. Photo by © Alberto Monteleone. colapisci.it)
It is a permanent inhabitant of the southern part of the Adriatic Sea.
Names of lightfish (Ichthyococcus ovatus) in other languages are as follows:
Ittiococco (Italian), Ovaler Leuchtfisch (German), Jajak (Croatian, Serbian).