Pi67 Myxine (Hagfish)

 

Pi67                             Myxine (Hagfish)

Phylum              : Chordata

Class                : Myxini

Order               : Myxiniformes

Family             : Myxinidae

Genus              : Myxine

 Description:

Jawless mouth, single nasal aperture, only a single pair of external gill openings, no operculum or covering fold of skin. Greyish or reddish brown above, either plain. Variations in colour.  Found on muddy bottoms where they hide in the mud. Slime is used for defence. Feeds chiefly on dead and dying fish of varying species by boring into the body and consuming viscera and musculature.