Common Name
Shetlands Plunderfish
Year Described
Andriashev, 1967
Identification
Dorsal Fin: II-III, 25-28
Anal Fin: 16-19
Pectoral Fin: 18-22
Pelvic Fin: I, 5
Caudal Fin: 8-11 (branched rays)
Gill Rakers: 9-18 (total in first arch)
Branchiostegal rays: 5
Upper Lateral Line Scales: 15-28 (tubular anteriorly, disc-shaped posteriorly)
Middle Lateral Line Scale: 7-21 (disc-shaped anteriorly and tube-shaped posteriorly)
Vertebrae: 36-39
An “barsukovi group” plunderfish. Body elongate, flattened ventrally, with a large and wide head. Post-temporal ridges not developed. Eyes large. Snout rounded; length equal to orbit. Interorbital wide (5.1-9.3 in HL). Two dorsal fins: one a very small spiny fin over opercle and the other a long-based fin consisting of rays. Second dorsal quite high. Anal fin shorter in height with origin well behind dorsal origin. Pectoral fin large and fan-shaped. Pelvic fin jugular, rounded and fairly long. Caudal fin truncate. Lower jaw projects slightly or not at all beyond upper. Mouth reaching middle or orbit; protractile. Jaws with small teeth. No teeth on vomer or palate. Upper opercular edge with a pointed, hook-like projection. Body naked. Two lateral lines: one on the upper body ending under the mid-dorsal fin and the other on the lateral midline on the rear body and caudal peduncle. Mental barbel fairly short (2.7-5.6 in HL) with an expanded tip (2 times as wide as stalk and 40-60% of barbel length) covered in papillae of various length. Barbel becomes smaller and less expanded with size.
Color
Body and head pale with dark spots and blotches, becoming smallest on top of head and largest on side of body. Belly pale and unmarked (rarely with a few random blotches). Spiny dorsal light or dark. Soft dorsal with oblique dark bands. Anal fin pale; with or without faint markings. Pectoral fin with 5-9 vertical spot-bands. Pelvic fin pale or dark basally. Caudal fin with 6-11 vertical bands. Barbel pale.
Size
Maximum size to 21cm TL.
Habitat
Captured from 430-1,120m. Bottom dwelling.
Range
Sub-Antarctic: known from off the S. Shetland Is. and the S. Orkney Is.
References
Balushkin, A.V. and R. Eakin. 1998. A new toad plunderfish Pogonophryne fusca sp. nova (Fam. Artedidraconidae: Notothenioidei) with notes on species composition and species groups in the genus Pogonophryne Regan. J. Ichthyol. 38(8):574-579.
Eakin, R.R. 1990. Artedidraconidae. p. 332-356. In O. Gon and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Fishes of the Southern Ocean. J.L.B. Smith Institute of Ichthyology, Grahamstown, South Africa.
Other Notes
Possibly conspecific with P. barsukovi (Balushkin & Eakin, 1998).