Spiny Deepsea Batfish, Halieutopsis echinoderma Ho 2022


Summary:
A blackish deepsea batfish with a somewhat pale vermiculate pattern, and black fins except for the pectorals which have paler undersides. The ventral surface is pale at the pelvic-fin bases, on the belly, and around the anus, and darker on the chin and outside of gill chamber.

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2022, Halieutopsis echinoderma in Fishes of Australia, accessed 30 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/5642

Spiny Deepsea Batfish, Halieutopsis echinoderma Ho 2022

More Info


Distribution

Coral Sea, east of Murray Island, Torres Strait, to off the Gold Coast, Queensland, at depths of 445-508 m. Elsewhere the species occurs off north-eastern Taiwan.

Similar Species

Differs from the similar Halieutopsis galatea in having a subtriangular disk with a pointed rostrum (vs. rounded with a blunt rostrum in H. echinoderma), a broader interorbital space (13.5–16.2% SL, vs. 11.7–12.4 in H. echinoderma), a relatively long pre-anal length (63.1–68.9% SL, vs. 57.4–64.5 in H. echinoderma), and a relatively short tail (31.1–36.9% SL, vs. 35.5–42.6% in H. echinoderma).
H. nasuta, which has a similar vermiculate pattern, differs in having sparse tubercles on the middle of the disk underside, bifurcate (vs. simple in H. echinoderma) principal tubercles on the lateral sides of the tail, in lacking small spines between the principal tubercles (vs. present in H. echinoderma), and a narrower interorbital space is wider (10.3–13.3% SL, vs. 13.5–16.2% SL).

Etymology

The specific name is from the Greek echinoderma (= spiny skin) in reference to the squamation of this species.

Species Citation

Halieutopsis echinoderma Ho 2021, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 10(1): 15, Figs. 7-8. Type locality: Daxi, Yilan, northeastern Taiwan, northwestern Pacific, depth ~ 400 m.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2022

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia  

Spiny Deepsea Batfish, Halieutopsis echinoderma Ho 2022

References


Ho, H.-C. 2022. Taxonomy and distribution of the deep-sea batfish genus Halieutopsis (Teleostei: Ogcocephalidae), with descriptions of five new species. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 10(1): 64 pp. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10010034

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37212011

Depth:400-511 m

Habitat:Demersal, upper slope

Max Size:7.4 cm SL

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map