Head to head
Elephant Fish vs Longnose Chimaera
Both fish are chimaeras with unusually shaped snouts, but they live at very different depths and use their snouts in very different ways.
| Elephant Fish | Longnose Chimaera | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Callorhinchus milii | Harriotta raleighana |
| Snout shape | Long, flexible, trunk-like, packed with electroreceptors | Extremely elongated, pointed, and rigid |
| Typical depth | Coastal and continental shelf waters | 200 to over 2,000 metres |
| Reproduction | Lays spiral-ridged egg cases | Lays egg cases on soft sediment |
| Range | Southern Hemisphere coastal waters | Multiple ocean basins worldwide |
| Commercial importance | Fished commercially in parts of its range | Not documented as commercially fished |
| Conservation status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Habitat | Ocean, coastal | Ocean |
Elephant Fish vs Longnose Chimaera: common questions
Which chimaera lives in much shallower water, the elephant fish or the longnose chimaera?
The elephant fish lives in much shallower water, typically found in coastal and continental shelf habitat, while the longnose chimaera is a genuine deep-sea specialist found from 200 metres down to over 2,000 metres.
How do the snouts of these two chimaeras differ?
The elephant fish has a long, flexible, trunk-like snout packed with electroreceptors for detecting buried prey, while the longnose chimaera has a rigid, dramatically elongated, pointed snout that is one of the most exaggerated among chimaera species.
Which one is targeted by commercial fishing?
The elephant fish is the one fished commercially in parts of its Southern Hemisphere range, while the longnose chimaera is not documented as a target of any significant commercial fishery.