Kingklip occur at depths of 50–500 m, but usually in the range of 250–350 m. They are bottom-dwelling and inhabit rocky localities on the shelf and upper continental slope.

[1] Andrew Smith, the redoubtable Scots explorer and zoologist, first described the kingklip species in 1847 from a specimen caught near the entrance to Table Bay and named it Xiphiurus capensis ('xiphos'=sword, 'oura'=tail).

The related species from New Zealand, Genypterus blacodes, has made its way to South African markets and is retailed as kingklip.

Kingklip's lack of obvious scales has sparked lively and ongoing debate in Jewish circles as to whether it qualifies as kosher or treif.

[3] A 12-month study on larval development in the southern Benguela Current suggested that there are different spawning strategies for the western Agulhas Bank and the West Coast.