Butterfish \But"ter*fish`\, n. (Zool.)
A name given to several different fishes, in allusion to
their slippery coating of mucus, as the {Stromateus
triacanthus} of the Atlantic coast, the {Epinephelus
punctatus} of the southern coast, the rock eel, and the
kelpfish of New Zealand.
[1913 Webster]