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NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD

Simushir snailfish

Polypera simushirae (Gilbert & Burke, 1912)

Source-backed taxonomic record

Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.

Open encyclopedia reference

Polypera is a monotypic genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Liparidae, the snailfishes. Its only species is Polypera simushirae which is found in the northwestern Pacific Ocean at depths down to 833 metres (2,733 ft). This species grows to a length of 77 centimetres (30 in) TL and has been recorded at a maximum weight of 11 kilograms (24 lb). This species is the only known member of its genus. It is probably the largest of the snailfishes.

Wikipedia contributors, Polypera; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:33:02.353031+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name
Polypera simushirae (Gilbert & Burke, 1912)
Name authority
(Gilbert & Burke, 1912)
Common name
Simushir snailfish
Rank
species
Accepted status
accepted
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Teleostei
Order
Perciformes
Family
Liparidae
Genus
Polypera
Extinction status
Not supplied by this source

Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

  1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
  2. kingdomAnimalia
  3. phylumChordata
  4. subphylumVertebrata
  5. infraphylumGnathostomata
  6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
  7. gigaclassActinopterygii
  8. superclassActinopteri
  9. classTeleostei
  10. orderPerciformes
  11. suborderCottoidei
  12. familyLiparidae Gill, 1861
  13. genusPolypera Burke, 1912
  14. speciesPolypera simushirae (Gilbert & Burke, 1912)

Close classified relatives

No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.

Browse 339 records assigned to Liparidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Recorded nameSource status
Cyclogaster simushirae Gilbert & Burke, 1912 Gilbert & Burke, 1912synonym

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

  1. https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=282316 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:4LDQ3. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.