Bottom fishes in the world. The great majority are benthopelagic, with a few bathypelagic members. Benthopelagic species are usually endemic, and most common on continental slopes, whereas bathypelagic species are more cosmopolitan in distribution. The center of distribution for Macrourids is in the Indo-Pacific region. Little is known of their life history; eggs are thought to ascend after fertilization and develop in the midwatcr below 200 m. Although few gut content analyses of adults have been performed, fin structure and photographs indicate that they feed mostly on bottom invertebrates.