Common Name
Fiolenti's Smoothhead
Year Described
Sazonov & Ivanov, 1979
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 19
Anal Fin: 27-28
Pectoral Fin: 9
Pelvic Fin: 6
Gill Rakers: usually 0 (total on upper limb of first arch), 12 on lower limb
Pyloric Caeca: 3-4
Body elongate and slender, with a large head. Eyes smaller than snout length. Teeth present on premaxilla, dentary, and palatine, but not on maxilla or vomer. Rear margin of jaw extends to anterior margin of orbit. A single supramaxilla above maxilla. Dorsal fin origin far behind anal fin origin (anal fin almost 1.5 times as large). Pectoral and pelvic fins fairly small. Scales absent on head. Body scales very small. A fleshy fold on dorsum and on the dorsal/ventral caudal peduncle.
Color
Uniformly dark brown.
Size
Maximum size to 37cm SL.
Habitat
Benthopelagic from 1,370-1,900m.
Range
Known from off the Bahamas but probably more widespread in the tropical Atlantic. Also off eastern Brazil.
References
Crabtree, R.E. & K.J Sulak. 1986. A contribution to the life history and distribution of Atlantic species of the deep-sea fish genus Conocara (Alepocephalidae). Deep Sea Research 33 (9): 1183-1201.
Whitehead, P.J.P. , M.-L. Bauchot, J.-C. Hureau, J.G. Nielsen and E. Tortonese. 1986. Fishes of the North-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Vol. I-III. UNESCO. Fishes of the North-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. http://species-identification.org.