Japanese Seabat, Dibranchus japonicus Amaoka & Toyoshima 1981
Japanese Seabat, Dibranchus japonicus. Source: Australian National Fish Collection, CSIRO. License: CC By Attribution-NonCommercial
Summary:
A uniformly blackish seabat with a strongly flattened oval to almost circular spiny disc, covered in rough tubercles. The small lure, held in a deep triangular cavity on the snout, attracts prey towards the ventral mouth.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2026, Dibranchus japonicus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 05 Nov 2026, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/3581
Japanese Seabat, Dibranchus japonicus Amaoka & Toyoshima 1981
More Info
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Distribution |
Exmouth Plateau, Western Australia, and off Raine Island, Queensland, to south of Tasmania. Elsewhere the species occurs in Japan and South Africa. |
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Features |
Dorsal fin 5; Anal fin 4; Pectoral fin 13–15; Pelvic fin I, 5. Disc almost circular; snout rounded, rostrum short, broad, projecting slightly beyond jaws. Esca (lure) wider than high, with a median dorsal lobe and two ventral lobes, situated in deep triangular illicial cavity. Disc covered in small tubercles; dorsal surface also with large tubercles armed with strong short spines occurring on dorsal margins of orbits, along disc margins and lateral sides of tail, and sprinkled irregularly on dorsal surface of disc. ectoral and pelvic fins relatively short, broad, skin covering extremely fleshy, the membranes thick. |
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Size |
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Colour |
Very dark coloration, including fins, and blackish linings of oral, gill, and peritoneal cavities. |
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Etymology |
The species is named for the type locality, off Iwate Prefecture, Japan. |
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Species Citation |
Dibranchus japonicus Amaoka & Toyoshima 1981, Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 28(2): 115-121 figs 1-4 [115, fig. 1-3]. Type locality: off Iwate Prefecture, 39°40´N, 142°28.4´E, Japan, 1180-1230 m. |
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Author |
Bray, D.J. 2026 |
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Resources |
Japanese Seabat, Dibranchus japonicus Amaoka & Toyoshima 1981
References
Amaoka, K. & Toyoshima, M. 1981. A new ogcocephalid fish, Dibranchus japonicus, from Japan. Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 28(2): 115-121 figs 1-4. https://doi.org/10.11369/jji1950.28.115
Bradbury, M.G. 1999. A review of the fish genus Dibranchus with descriptions of new species and a new genus Solocisquama (Lophiiformes, Ogcocephalidae). Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 51(5): 259-310. See ref online
Bradbury, M.G. 1999. Family Ogcocephalidae. pp. 2023-2025 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 3 pp. 1397-2068.
Ho, H. 2020. Dibranchus japonicus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T140300323A140322665. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T140300323A140322665.en. Accessed on 02 November 2026.
Nakabo, T. (ed.) 2002. Fishes of Japan with pictorial keys to the species. English edition.. Tokyo : Toikai University Press Vol. 1 pp.1-866.
