During the day these fish lurk in the deep but at night they migrate towards the surface, attracted by ship lights can sometimes be seen darting around the surface their eyes reflecting bright green.It grows up to 73 millimetres and may reach the age of 3 years.

It is a widespread marine fish, known from shallow tropical waters in the south-eastern Atlantic, from the western Pacific off Australia and New Zealand, and from the eastern Pacific off Chile. It is one of the few species of lanternfishes to inhabit shallow waters, and in those waters it is one of the most abundant species of fish, and central to the food chain of the upper continental slope.

Predator on plankton.

It spawns multiple times in the winter so that the fry can take advantage of the spring bloom of krill. A major part of the food web in the deep ocean.
Over 100 species of lantern fish, this one being the most common in NZ waters.

Deep New Zealand: Batson P
Hulley, P.A., 1990. Myctophidae. p. 398-467. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI; Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 1.