Common Name
Plain Brotula
Year Described
Nielsen & Retzer, 1994
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 96-101
Anal Fin: 80-86
Pelvic Fin: 2
Pectoral Fin: 26-30
Caudal Fin: 8
Gill Rakers: 12-14 (only long rakers)
Pseudobranchial Filaments: 2-3
Vertebrae: 56-60
Body elongated and eel-like. Snout blunt. Jaw extends past posterior margin of orbit. Teeth present in jaws, on palatine, and on vomer. Antherior basibranchial tooth path narrow and long. Preopercular spine numbers 1. Spine on preopercle strong and sharp. Opercular spine strong. Dorsal and anal fins confluent with caudal fin. Pelvic fin reaches almost to the anus. Lateral line not obvious. Body scales cycloid.
Color
Body gray grading to white on the belly. Numerous black spots on the body and upper half of the head. Dorsal and anal fins with faint spots and white margins. Preserved fish uniformly brown with a dense sprinkling of dark melanophores on head, body, and median fins. No ocelli on either dorsal or anal fin.
Size
Maximum size to 115mm SL
Habitat
Occurs on the continental shelf and slope from 183-937m.
Range
Southeastern Florida to the northern Caribbean and the northern Greater Antilles. Also off the Yucatan Peninsula to Honduras. A possible record in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico.
References
Nielsen, J. G. 1999. A review of the genus Neobythites (Pisces, Ophidiidae) in the Atlantic, with three new species. Bulletin of Marine Science v. 64 (no. 2): 335-372.
Other Notes
Named for the rather plain preserved fish, but the live fish is quite the opposite from “unicolor”. Color pattern seems to be a key character in separating Neobythites species.