Okamura’s Deepsea Batﬁsh, Halieutopsis okamurai Ho 2021

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Bray, D.J. 2024, Halieutopsis okamurai in Fishes of Australia, accessed 05 Dec 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/5740

Okamura’s Deepsea Batﬁsh, Halieutopsis okamurai Ho 2021

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Distribution	NW of Exmouth Gulf, Western Australia, depth 3218-3464m. Elsewhere the species is known from southeastern Japan.
Features	Dorsal surface of disk and tail covered with moderate-sized tubercles and exhibiting following combination of features: Tubercle on rostrum small and low, bearing some small spinules at its base; simple tubercles on disk edge forming serrated margin; ventral surface naked except for two tubercles on each side of pelvic fin bases; tubercles on tail associated with lateral-line neuromasts bifurcate; one or two lateral-line neuromasts on each side of ventral series; following proportional measurements relatively small: Skull length 27.4% SL, eye diameter 7.1% SL, illicial cavity width 8.8% SL, mouth width 19.4% SL, upper jaw length 10.6% SL, predorsal length 62.2% SL, postanal length 70.0% SL, dorsal-ﬁn length 14.6% SL, pectoral-ﬁn length 20.0% SL, anal-ﬁn length 14.2% SL, caudal-ﬁn length 17.1% SL. Anterior margin of disk slightly bulging; rostrum extending slightly anteriorly beyond disk margin.
Similar Species	Halieutopsis okamurai differs from H. nudiventer in having tubercles with 5–6 facets on the dorsal surface (vs. 10–14 facets in H. nudiventer), numerous densely placed, moderate-sized tubercles on the dorsal surface and tail (vs. loosely scattered, large tubercles on the dorsal surface and no tubercles on the ventral surface of the tail), and bifurcate tubercles on the tail associated with the lateral-line scales (vs. simple tubercles there). H. okamurai differs from H. bathyoreos in having the rostrum not extending beyond and overhanging the mouth, the illicial cavity is a depressed hollow (vs. a broad, ﬂat trough in H. bathyoreos) that is barely visible in ventral view (vs. wholly visible), the tubercles on the disk edge and tail are small and densely placed (vs. larger and more loosely scattered), and the tubercles associated with the lateral-line neuromast on the tail are bifurcate (vs. simple).
Etymology	The species is "named after the late Dr. Osamu Okamura (Professor Emeritus, BSKU), who collected the specimen, in recognition of his remarkable contributions to the study of deep-sea fishes, especially the gadiform fishes".
Species Citation	Halieutopsis okamurai Ho 2021, Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 10(1): 48, Figs. 29-30. Type locality: Ogasawara Islands, Japan, northwestern Pacific, 30°39.4'N, 140°36.8'E, depth 1,950 m.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2024
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Okamura’s Deepsea Batﬁsh, Halieutopsis okamurai Ho 2021

References

Ho, H.-C. 2021. 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) [for 2022]: 1-64. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10010034