tilefish, any of about 40 species of elongated marine fishes in the family Malacanthidae (order Perciformes), with representatives occurring in tropical and warm temperate seas. Malacanthidae is formally divided into the subfamilies Malacanthinae and Latilinae; however, some taxonomists consider the Latilinae distinct enough to make up their own separate family (Branchiostegidae).
The most commercially important species, known specifically as the tilefish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps), is the largest, often attaining lengths of more than 90 cm (3 feet). The tilefish has a peculiar history as a commercial fish. Living at depths of 60–365 m (200–1,200 feet), the species was not known until 1879, when it became commercially attractive because of its abundance in the western Gulf Stream. Then, in 1882, hundreds of millions of dead tilefish were brought to the surface after a series of severe storms. No living specimens were seen for the next 10 years, although commercial harvests later resumed. The tilefish dieoff is now thought to have been caused by the upwelling of cold waters into the fishes’ customary warm-water habitat.