First record of the longfin dragonfish, Bathophilus longipinnis (Stomiidae; Melanostomiinae), from Japan

Abstract

A single specimen (124 mm in standard length) of the genus Bathophilus, trawled from 300 m in Suruga Bay, Japan on 30 January 2019, was identified as Bathophilus longipinnis (Pappenheim, 1914), being characterized by the following combination of characters: bases of pelvic fins equidistant between dorsal and ventral profiles; pectoral-fin rays 8; pelvic-fin rays 10; ventral row of photophores from tip of isthmus to anal-fin origin 32; large lateral series photophores 25; vertebrae 45 (previously recorded range 40–44); head length 17.3% in standard length (18.0–25.0%); body depth at origin of dorsal fin base 14.3% in standard length. The circumglobal (Atlantic Ocean; Indian Ocean; southern Pacific Ocean: Australia; Central Pacific: Hawaiian Islands; western Pacific Ocean: South China Sea) species has been previously recorded from the Kuroshio Current basin (20– 38˚S, 138–152˚E), although the detailed collection locality was not stated. There being no other records from Japanese waters, the specimen from Suruga Bay represents the first unequivocal record of B. longipinnis from Japan. The new standard Japanese name “Amanogawa-gingaeso” is proposed for the species.