Common Name
Marion's Spiderfish
Year Described
Mead, 1958
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 12-13
Anal Fin: 12-14
Pelvic Fin: 8 (none modified)
Pectoral Fin: 12-13 (none modified)
Branchiostegal Rays: 15-17
Gill Rakers: 6 plate-like upper, 1 on corner, then 12-14 on lower limb (first arch)
Lateral Line: 64-65
Vertebrae: 63-64
Body fairly elongate with a large mouth. Eye vestigial and buried in skin. Teeth minute and granular. Pectoral fin simple (without modified rays) and not reaching past dorsal fin origin. Ventral fins without modified or elongate rays. Anal fin origin well behind last dorsal ray. Lowermost caudal fin rays not modified or elongate. There is no sub-caudal notch. Adipose fin absent. Scales on body and head.
Color
Body white with dark scale edges. Head black. Fins black.
Size
Maximum size to 280mm SL.
Habitat
Benthic on continental slope and rise from 850-2,650m.
Range
Off Virginia to the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and SE Brazil.
References
Franco, M.A., A.C. Braga, G.W. Nunan, & P.A. Costa. 2009. Fishes of the family Ipnopidae (Teleostei: Aulopiformes) collected on the Brazilian continental slope between 11 degrees and 23 degrees S. J. Fish Biol. 75(4): 797-815.
McEachran, J.D. & J.D. Fechhelm. 1998. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Volume 1: Myxiniformes to Gasterosteiformes. University of Texas Press, Austin. i-viii + 1-1112.