Abstract
A single specimen of the derichthyid longneck eel, Derichthys serpentinus, was collected from midwater off Miyagi Prefecture, northwestern Pacific, Japan (HUMZ 182165, 288 mm in total length, near ripe female). The specimen was characterized by 252 dorsal fin rays, 165 anal fin rays, 132 vertebrae (total), a short snout and lower jaw, concave predorsal region, conspicuous head pores, many cicatrix-like dermal ridges on the head and a uniformly dark brown body. In Japanese waters, D. serpentinus has been previously recorded from the Kyushu-Palau Ridge (in the gut contents of a berycid, Beryx splendens) and the Ogasawara Islands (leptocephalus). The resent report, based on a near ripe specimen captured directly by trawl net, represents the first reliable record of the species from Japan and northernmost western Pacific record of the species.
