Common Name
Network Slickhead
Year Described
Markle & Krefft, 1985
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 17
Anal Fin: 13
Pectoral Fin: 14-15
Pelvic Fin: 7-9
Lateral Line:
Gill Rakers: 22 (total on first arch)
Pyloric Caeca: 13-22
Vertebrae: 27-28 precaudal, 19-20 caudal
Body moderately elongate and slender, with a large head. Eyes slightly larger to smaller than than snout. A conical knob at the tip of snout. Teeth present in a single row in upper and lower jaws. Rear margin of jaw extends to the posterior margin of orbit. Dorsal fin origin anterior to anal fin. Pelvic and pectoral fins very small. Scales absent on head. Scales on body moderate (17-19 transverse rows from first lateral scale to dorsal fin).
Color
Brown with darker scale centers, forming a reticulate pattern.
Size
Ranges from 19.7-21.6cm SL.
Habitat
Benthopelagic. Collected as deep as 2000m.
Range
The only western Atlantic record is in the central Atlantic (27° 38'-43'N, 52° 22'-20'W).
References
Markle, D.F. and G. Krefft, 1985. A new species and review of Bajacalifornia (Pisces: Alepocephalidae) with comments on the hook jaw of Narcetes stomias. Copeia 1985(2): 345-356.
Other Notes
The two western Atlantic Bajacalifornia spp. have relatively low vertebral, gill raker, and transverse scale row counts compared to the other species in the genus.