Genus Halicmetus

Deep-sea batfshes with the following characteristics: head strongly depressed; anterior margin of disk truncate to broadly rounded; rostrum extending anteriorly to or slightly beyond mouth and anterior margin of disk; mouth small; dorsal fin present or absent, if present, minute in size; entire body covered with small bucklers and small dermal tubercles; subopercular buckler moderately developed, usually bearing some short terminal spinules; gill filaments present on 2nd and 3rd gill arches, absent from fourth gill arch; gill rakers present on first to third gill arches; 3–4 gill rakers on outer side of 2nd gill arch; esca triangular and bulbous, fringed on its lower margin and usually bearing a pair of dorsal cirri; teeth on vomer and palate forming three closely adjacent quadrangular patches; tongue teeth (5th ceratobranchial) in two closely attached elongated patches.