Common Redmouth Whalefish, Rondeletia loricata Abe & Hotta 1963
Common Redmouth Whalefish, Rondeletia loricata - captured in a mdiwater trawl NW of Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea, on the NORFANZ Expedition, May 2003. The skin has been damaged by the trawl net.. Source: Mark McGrouther / NORFANZ Founding Parties. License: All rights reserved
Small flabby deep-sea fishes with a large head, a large mouth and small eyes. External scales are lacking and the lateral line consists of a series of vertical rows of papillae.
The common Redmouth Whalefish is orange to reddish brown in life with reddish-orange inside the mouth and gill cavities.
Common Redmouth Whalefish, Rondeletia loricata Abe & Hotta 1963
More Info
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Features |
Meristic features: Dorsal fin 13–14; Anal fin 12–13; Pectoral fin 9–11; Pelvic fin 5; Caudal fin 18–19; Lateral line (rows of papillae) 15–19; Gill rakers 18–21; Vertebrae 24–26. No bony sphenotic hook over orbit; large posterior extensions of spongy bone on posttemporal dorsally and cleithrum ventrally. |
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Size |
To 11 cm; juveniles as small as 14 mm in length resemble adults. |
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Colour |
Orange-brown with orange-red inside the mouth, gill cavity, and fin rays in life; dark brown fading to light brown in preservative. |
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Similar Species |
The lack of a bony sphenotic hook, the presence of posterior bony extensions on the posttemporal and cleithrum, and fewer rows of lateral-line papillae distinguish this species from the only other species in the family, the Hooked Redmouth Whalefish, R. bicolor, that occurs in the Central Pacific (rarely) and Atlantic Oceans. |
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Author |
John R. Paxton & Dianne J. Bray |
