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Snailfish are scorpaeniform marine fish of the family Liparidae. Widely distributed from the Arctic to Antarctic Oceans including the northern Pacific, the snailfish family contains approximately 23 genera and 195 species. They are closely related to the sculpins of the family Cottidae and the lumpfish of the family Cyclopteridae; snailfish are sometimes included within the latter family.

The snailfish family is poorly studied and few specifics are known. Their elongate, tadpole-like bodies are similar in profile to the rattails. Their heads are large with small eyes; their bodies are slender to deep, tapering to a very small tail. The extensive dorsal and anal fins may merge or nearly merge with the tail fin. Snailfish are scaleless with a thin, loose gelatinous skin; some species, such as the spiny snailfish (Acantholiparis opercularis) have prickly spines as well. Their teeth are small and simple with blunt cusps. The deep-sea species have prominent, well-developed sensory pores of the head, part of the animals' lateral line system.

The pectoral fins are large and provide the snailfish with its primary means of locomotion. They are benthic fish with pelvic fins modified to form an adhesive disc; this nearly circular disc is absent in Paraliparis and Nectoliparis species. Snailfish range in size from Paraliparis australis at 5 centimetres to Polypera simushirae at some 77 centimetres in length. The latter species may reach a weight of 11 kilograms, but most species are toward the smaller end of this range. Snailfish are of no interest to commercial fisherieslobster boat unloading its catch in Ilfracombe harbour, North Devon, England A fishery (plural: fisheries) is an organized effort by humans to catch fish or other aquatic species, an activity known as fishing. Generally, a fishery exists for the purpose o.

The habitats chosen by snailfish are as widely variable as their size; they are found in both shallow intertidal zones and at fantastic depths of 7,500 metres or more, in both cold and warm waters. The diminutive inquiline snailfish (Liparis inquilinus) of the northwestern Atlantic is known to live out its life inside the mantle cavity of the scallopScallops : Eukaryota : Animalia : Mollusca : Bivalvia : Ostreoida Family Pectinidae Genera Pecten Pedum Amusium Chlamys Decatopecten ''Argopecten Flexopecten Lissopecten Hyalopecten ''Nodipecten Patinopecten Semipallium Mimachlamys ''Equichlamys Mesopeplu Placopecten magellanicus. The kelp snailfish (Liparis tunicatus) lives amongst the kelp forests of the Bering StraitThe Bering Strait is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, the eastmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, the westernmost point of the American continent, about 85 km in width, with a depth of 30 50 m. The strait connects the Chukchi Sea and the estuaryAn estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and within which sea water mixes with fresh water. The key feature of an estuary is that it is an interface between sea water and fresh water and there is an of the St. Lawrence River. Other species are found on muddy or silty bottoms of continental slopes. Snailfish are abundant in most (especially polar) waters and are highly resilient.

Reproductive strategies are also known to vary among the species. At least one species, the abyssal snailfish (Careproctus ovigerum) of the North Pacific, is known to practice mouth brooding ; that is, the male of the species carries the developing eggs around in his mouth. All species are known to lay a small number (c. 300) of relatively large eggs (4.5-8 mm in diameter). Other species of the genus Careproctus lay their eggs in the gillGill In aquatic organisms In aquatic organisms, gills are a respiratory organ for the extraction of oxygen from water and for the excretion of carbon dioxide. Many small aquatic animals absorb oxygen through the surface of their bodies in general, but mor cavities of king crabs.

The diet of snailfish consists primarily of small benthic crustaceans, mollusks, polychaete worms, and other small invertebrates. Some species are also piscivorous . Specialist species such as Paraliparis rosaceus feed exclusively on sea cucumbers.