Common Name
Antilles Lanternfish
Year Described
Nafpaktitis, 1974
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 15
Anal Fin: 14
Pelvic Fin: 8
Pectoral Fin: 11
Gill Rakers: 23-24
Lateral Line: 36
Body Photophores
PVO: 2 (first at base of pectoral fin; two PVO in almost straight line with first PO)
PO: 5 (first well separated from rest; fourth elevated above level of PVO2; fifth slightly elevated near pelvic base)
VO: 5 (first, second, and third in a steeply ascending line; third almost directly above fourth; first, fourth and fifth in straight line)
SAO: 3 (first over anus above level of VO5; in steep line; third more spaced from others right below LL)
AOa: 6 (first elevated over second; last elevated slightly; rest in line)
AOp: 5 (almost a straight line, first posterior to last anal fin ray)
Prc: 4 (curving line; equally spaced; fourth 2-3 times diameter under LL)
PLO: 1 (much closer to lateral line than pectoral fin, directly over second PVO)
VLO: 1 (about midway between LL and pelvic fin base)
Pol: 1 (same distance from LL as SAO3; slightly posterior to last AOa)
A very large triangular luminous scale adjacent to PLO (larger than pupil).
Head Photophores
Dn: present on the antero-dorsal part of orbit above nostril; large (around size of nasal organ), rounded and anteriorly directed.
Vn: present on the anterior and antero-ventral part of the orbit; thick and elongate, running from Dn to the ventral part of the orbit, including the rear margin of the nasal organ. Mature adults with similar sized organs. A dark band of tissue surrounds the organ.
Op: 2 (first small behind jaw, second above it is similar in size to a body photophore)
Color
Likely dark with silvery scales. Dark pigment around luminous organs on head and around eyes. Fins pale.
Size
Maximum size to 110mm.
Habitat
Midwater pelagic in continental waters. Caught by day at 300-560m.
Range Map
Range
So far known only from off the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and the Leeward Islands.
References
Hartel, K.E. and J.E. Craddock. 2003. Myctophiformes. pp. 942-951. In: FAO Species Identification Guide to Fishes of the Western Atlantic. (ed. Carpenter, K.), pp. 1308–1369. UN FAO Publishers, Rome.
Nafpaktitis, B.G. 1977. Family Myctophidae. In: Fishes of the western North Atlantic. Sears Foundation for Marine Research. Part 7, No. 1: 13-258.