Common Name
Many-fanged Blindfish
Year Described
Nielsen, 1984
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 72-75
Anal Fin: 62-65
Pectoral Fin: 23-24
Pelvic Fin: 1
Caudal Fin: 10
Gill Rakers: 23-25 on first arch
Vertebrae: 77-79(32-34 precaudal)
Elongate and translucent, with loose gelatinous skin. Head broader than body. Eyes not visible. 11 fangs on vomer and 8-11 fangs on dentary. No ventral flexure on anterior vertebral column. No lobes at the base of penis. One pseudobranchial filament. No bulbs at base of penis. Body scaleless. Dorsal and anal fins continuous with caudal fin.
Color
Body pale with translucent skin, with internal organs and bone structure visible. A few small brown spots on body. Peritoneum unpigmented.
Size
Known sizes range from 45-83mm SL.
Habitat
Benthic at abyssal depths (3227-4279m).
Range
Known from 3 specimens caught well off the southeastern coast of the U.S., the central Atlantic, and off northwestern Africa.
References
Nielsen, J. G. 1984. Two new, abyssal Barathronus spp. from the North Atlantic (Pisces: Aphyonidae). Copeia 1984 (no. 3): 579-584.
Nielsen, J. G., Mincarone, M. M., & F. Di Dario. 2015. A new deep-sea species of Barathronus Goode & Bean from Brazil, with notes on Barathronus bicolor Goode & Bean (Ophidiiformes: Aphyonidae). Neotropical Ichthyology, 13(1), 53-60.
Nielsen, J. G. 2019. Revision of the circumglobal genus Barathronus (Ophidiiformes, Bythitidae) with a new species from the eastern North Atlantic Ocean. Zootaxa, 4679(2), zootaxa-4679.
Other Notes
The number of fangs, peritoneum color, plus fin meristics differentiate this species from the other Barathronus in the area.