Gaper (fish)

{{Short description|Species of ray-finned fish}}

{{Speciesbox

| status = LC

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{cite iucn |author=Starnes, W.C. |date=2010 |title=Champsodon capensis |volume=2010 |page=e.T155084A4695047 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T155084A4695047.en |access-date=20 November 2021}}

| taxon = Champsodon capensis

| authority = Regan, 1908

}}

The gaper (Champsodon capensis) is a species of crocodile toothfish belonging to the family Champsodontidae. It is found in the Indian Ocean along the coast of East Africa, from Kenya to South Africa, as well as off the islands of Seychelles and Mauritius.{{Fishbase|Champsodon|capensis|month=December|year=2019}} This species has entered the Mediterranean Sea, most likely as a Lessepsian migrant, through the Suez Canal, being first recorded in 2012.{{cite journal | author1 = Cem Dalyan | author2 = Emre Yemisken | author3 = L. Eryılmaz | name-list-style = amp | year = 2012 | title = A new record of gaper (Champsodon capensis Regan, 1908) in the Mediterranean Sea | doi = 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2012.02019.x | journal = Journal of Applied Ichthyology | volume = 28 | issue = 5| pages = 834–835 }} Gapers are typically found in large shoals, which move from deep water to the surface at night.