Flatscale Triangular Batfish, Malthopsis bulla Ho & Last 2021



Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2023, Malthopsis bulla in Fishes of Australia, accessed 28 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/5576

Flatscale Triangular Batfish, Malthopsis bulla Ho & Last 2021

More Info


Distribution

Off northern Australia between north of Port Hedland, Western Australia, and northeast of Cape Don, Arafura Sea, Northern Territory.
Mostlyinhabits the continental shelf and upper slope at depths above 400 m.

Features

Dorsal fin 5-6;  11-13.
Body disc flattened, with anterior portion of skull only slightly elevated above rest of disc; rostrum small, rostral spine very short, directed obliquely to vertically upward, length 3.9-7.6% SL. Orbit small; interorbital space broad; rostrum short; adpressed anal fin not reaching caudal-fin base.
Bucklers on body uniformly flattened without sharp apices; large naked areas present on central region of dorsal disk; ventral surface of disk partly covered with large bucklers on thoracic region and smaller bucklers on belly; spinules absent on the interspaces between the bucklers of the ventral surface; subopercular buckler with an enlarged, anteriorly directed spine bearing spinelets along its margin.

Etymology

The specific name is from the Latin bulla (= knob) in reference to the flattened bucklers covering the entire body.

Species Citation

Malthopsis bulla Ho & Last 2021, Bulletin of Marine Science 97(1): 177, Figs. 6-7. Type locality: Northwest of Port Hedland, North-West Shelf, Western Australia, 18°12'S, 118°14'E, depth 269 m.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2023

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Flatscale Triangular Batfish, Malthopsis bulla Ho & Last 2021

References


Ho, H.-C. & Last, P.R. 2020. Review of the batfish genus Malthopsis from Australia (Lophiiformes: Ogcocephalidae), with descriptions of five new species. Bulletin of Marine Science 97(1): 165-218. https://doi.org/10.5343/bms.2020.0037

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37212006

Depth:143-1023 m

Habitat:Demersal, bathydermersal

Max Size:8.7 cm SL

Native:Endemic

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map