Common Name
Flathead Brotula
Year Described
Koefoed, 1927
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 91-107
Anal Fin: 74-87
Pectoral Fin: 22-29
Caudal Fin: 8-11
Vertebrae: 60-61
Gill Rakers: 3 rakers (first arch)
Branchiostegal Rays: 8-9
Body elongate and tapering to the rear. Anterior head and snout flattened (duck-billed). Anterior nostril tubular and overhangs lips. Rear nostril a pit. Eye fairly small and directed dorsally. Teeth in both jaws, palatine, and vomer. Mouth reaches well beyond eye. Maxilla sunken and overhung by infraorbital area. Lower jaw tip with blunt knob. A strong opercular spine is present. Pectoral fin medium sized and fan shaped with a short peduncle. Dorsal and anal fins are continuous with caudal fin. Pelvic fin a single filamentous ray. Body and head fully scaled. Lateral line double.
Color
Body uniformly dark brown to blue-gray with no markings. Eye bluish. Head pores paler than body.
Size
Maximum size to 68cm TL.
Habitat
Soft bottoms from 1050-2830m.
Range
Caught off Newfoundland and in the Gulf of Mexico.
References
McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. 1998. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Volume 1: Myxiniformes to Gasterosteiformes. University of Texas Press, Austin. i-viii + 1-1112.
Bañón, R. 2001. New record of Cataetyx laticeps (Bythitidae) in northwestern Atlantic. Cybium 2001, 25(1): 93-94.