Abyssobrotula hadropercularis

Description. Selected meristic and morphometric characters are shown in Table 1. The description is based on the holotype, differences observed in the paratype mentioned in parenthesis. Body compressed with tapering tail, depth at anus about 7 times in SL. Head inflected downward, its length slightly less than half preanal-fin length. Cycloid scales in some parts of head and body (Fig. 2), but empty scale pockets indicate that most areas of body and head covered with scales. Judging from the loose skin, snout and dorsal part of head seem to have been swollen. Two pairs of nostrils with wide opening between tip of snout and eye: Anterior nostril circular at tip of snout and posterior nostril between anterior nostril and eye, slightly exposing lateral ethmoid. Eye small, 3.8 (4.6) times in snout length. Mouth inferior, upper jaw long, posterior margin extending well behind eye. Supramaxilla elliptical. Opercle robust, but its dorsal margin extremely thin making rudimentary bulge above spine; its spine pointed and strong not reaching posterior end of subopercle. Preopercle thin and soft, its hind margin without spines. Gill opening wide. Anterior left gill arch (right gill arch is missing in holotype) with 5 (4 – 5) short rakers on upper branch, one long raker at the angle between branches, and lower branch with 7 (8 – 9) long rakers followed by 7 (7 – 8) short rakers. Long rakers robust and close-set (Fig. 3). Longest gill raker on anterior arch about three times length of longest gill filament. Pseudobranch consisting of two short filaments. Branchiostegal rays 7 in left and 8 in right (8 in both sides). Lateral line indistinct. Base of dorsal and anal fins long, continuous with caudal fin; their rays unbranched. Origin of dorsal fin above base of pectoral fin. Origin of anal fin well anterior to midpoint of body. Pectoral fin slender extending beyond anus. Pelvic-fin rays thread-like, originating below preopercle. Caudal fin missing most parts of rays (with slender rays). Anus just anterior to anal-fin origin. A. hadropercularis sp. nov. A. galatheae * NSMT-P 121429 NSMT-P 121428 Holotype Paratype Min (mean) max No SL (mm) 200 149 67 – 157 16 Meristic characters Dorsal-fin rays 116 112 97 (105.1) 116 15 Caudal-fin rays 8 8 8 16 Anal-fin rays 90 87 76 (83.0) 96 15 Pectoral-fin rays 14 (left), 15 (right) 14 (left), 15 (right) 10 (10.1) 11 16 Pelvic-fin rays 2 2 2 16 Precaudal vertebrae 19 20 17 (18.3) 19 16 Caudal vertebrae 48 48 49 (51.5) 56 16 Dorsal-fin origin above vertebra number 8 9 6 (7.1) 8 15 Dorsal-fin origin above anal-fin ray number 28 27 23 (25.8) 30 15 Anal-fin origin below vertebra number 23 24 21 (21.5) 23 15 Long gill rakers 8 9 8 (9.9) 11 16 Total gill rakers 20 21 15 (18.6) 22 16 Morphometric characters in % SL Head 22.5 22.0 17.5 (18.4) 19.5 13 Depth at origin of anal fin 14.0 13.5 11.0 (13.7) 15.0 11 Upper jaw 11.5 11.5 9.5 (10.5) 12.0 13 Diameter of pigmented eye 1.2 1.3 0.7 (0.8) 0.9 6 Postorbital 14.5 14.5 11.5 (12.4) 13.0 10 Prepelvic 14.5 14.0 10.5 (11.8) 12.5 13 Preanal 42.5 42.5 33.0 (38.3) 41.5 14 Predorsal 25.0 25.5 20.5 (21.9) 25.5 14 Pelvic fin to anal fin origin 28.5 29.5 25.0 (27.3) 29.0 12 Pectoral fin ** 24.0 23.0 21.0 – 51.0 13 Pelvic fin ** 12.5 13.0 4.6 – 12.0 10 Long gill raker 3.3 3.4 2.6 (3.3) 3.8 8 Longest gill filament 1.1 1.2 0.4 (0.6) 0.8 6 * 14 specimens from Nielsen (1977) and 2 specimens newly examined (NSMT-P 18975 and 98870) ** fin rays often broken Head pores (Fig. 4). Infraorbital pores 6, preoperculomandibular pores 7 (left) or 8 (right) (8). Anterior five preoperculomandibular pores of on ventral surface of lower jaw. Dentition. Premaxilla and dentary with 2 – 7 irregular rows of small, pointed teeth. Palatines with several irregular rows of small, pointed teeth. Vomer boomerang-shaped with 2 – 5 (2 – 3) irregular rows of small, pointed teeth (inner row regular). Two median and one sideways on basibranchials in holotype, most probably caused by the partly destroyed mouth-floor (fig. 5 showing undisturbed basibranchial tooth patches of paratype). Axial skeleton (based on radiographs). First neural spine about half length of second. Neural spines 2 – 7 gradually decreasing in length and the posterior seven precaudal spines increasing in length. Bases of neural spines 4 – 19 (20) enlarged. Parapophyses developed on vertebrae 7 – 19 (20). Pleural ribs on vertebrae 3 – 17 (18). Epipleural ribs could not observed. Otolith (Fig. 6). Otolith small (0.8 mm long) nearly round in outline except for slightly elevated mid-dorsal region. Inner face almost flat, smooth, with barely visible, shallow, centrally placed sulcus. Outer face strongly convex, smooth. Otolith length to height = 1.2, length to thickness = 1.8, and length to sulcus = 3.3. Colour (nine months after captured). Oral cavity and dorsal area and sides of head bluish and lower part dark brown. Eyes bluish with light lens. Branchial cavity and peritoneum dark brown. Abdomen dark bluish. Sides of body light brown. Fin rays with dark brown pigmentation.