Common Name
Atlantic Flathead Brotula
Year Described
Cohen, 1964
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 93-103
Anal Fin: 70-77
Pectoral Fin: 27-29
Caudal Fin: 10-12
Pelvic Fin: 2
Gill Rakers: 18-21 (first arch)
Vertebrae: 15-16 precaudal, 53-57 total
Body elongate but fairly robust. Tail tapering but not greatly elongated. Head distinctly flattened. Snout with flaps, ridges, and papillae. Eye fairly small. Mouth large. Maxilla extends well past eye and is greatly expanded and not sheathed posteriorly. Teeth present in both jaws, vomer, and palatines. Branchiostegal rays 8. Gill rakers longer than eye diameter. Preopercle free and not serrate. Opercular spine weak and buried in skin. Body completely covered in scales except for a naked snout. Lateral line extends back to level of anal fin origin (under dorsal ray 24-32). Dorsal and anal fins continuous with tail. Caudal fin elongated. Pectoral fin fanlike. Pelvic fins short and threadlike.
Larvae are deep-bodied and stout with greatly elongated filamentous projections on the first dorsal rays and on the gut.
Color
Body dark brown overall. Head darker brown. Fins also darker brown. Juveniles paler whitish.
Size
Maximum size to 610mm SL.
Habitat
Bathydemersal over soft bottoms (220-1830m).
Range
Off New England to Suriname, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea.
References
Cohen D.M. 1964. A review of the ophidioid fish genus Luciobrotula with the description of a new species from the western North Atlantic. Bulletin of Marine Science 14 (3): 387–398.
Nielsen J.G. 2009. A revision of the bathyal genus Luciobrotula (Teleostei, Ophidiidae) with two new species. Galathea Report 22: 141–156.
Wong, M. K., M. Y. Lee, & W. J. Chen. 2021. Integrative taxonomy reveals a rare and new cusk-eel species of Luciobrotula (Teleostei, Ophidiidae) from the Solomon Sea, West Pacific. European journal of taxonomy, 750, 52-69.
Other Notes
The only other member of the genus in the area is found off S. Brazil and has a lower vertebral number.