RARE N.Z. FISH CAUGHT
RIVETTUS HOOKED OFF CAPE PALLISER
(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, March 8.
One of New Zealand’s rarest fish, a 4ft 6in rivettus, or ‘‘oil fish,” was caught in Cook Strait off Cape Palliser on Sunday by an Island Bay fisherman, Mr James Imlach. It is said to be the fourth of its kind caught in the world. ! Hooked on a set line, the 301 b fish struggled violently before it was hauled into the launch. Extra difficulty in handling the fish was caused by its razorlike scales. Each separate scale on the heavily-muscled body stands out from the skin as a razor-sharp four-edged spine, £in long. Mr J. Moreland, ichthyologist at the Dominion Museum, said today that the oil fish was the best specimen of the four caught in New Zealand since 1928. The rivettus was indigenous to New Zealand, he said. Other closely-re-lated species were caught infrequently in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
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Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27603, 9 March 1955, Page 14
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158RARE N.Z. FISH CAUGHT Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27603, 9 March 1955, Page 14
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