COMMENTS
v. 12.0 – 8 Oct. 2024 view/download PDF
Family CARAPIDAE Pearlfishes
9 genera · 37 species
Subfamily PYRAMODONTINAE
Pyramodon Smith & Radcliffe 1913 etymology not explained, perhaps pyramus, pyramid, and odon, tooth, referring to large, robust canine on head of vomer
Pyramodon lindas Markle & Olney 1990 anglicized plural of two mature women both named Linda (presumably wives) who supported the authors’ work, an allusion to the fact that holotype and paratype are both mature females
Pyramodon parini Markle & Olney 1990 in honor of Nikolai Vasil’evich Parin (1932-2012), Russian Academy of Sciences, who independently recognized the distinctiveness of this species during his studies of the Nazca and Sala y Gomez Ridge fauna, for his many contributions to oceanic ichthyology
Pyramodon punctatus (Regan 1914) spotted, its olivaceous body “powdered with little dark spots”
Pyramodon ventralis Smith & Radcliffe 1913 ventral, distinguished from Snyderidia by the presence of ventral-fin filaments
Snyderidia Gilbert 1905 –idia, belonging to: ichthyologist John Otterbein Snyder (1867-1943), who “ably assisted” Gilbert on the Hawaiian cruise during which type was collected
Snyderidia canina Gilbert 1905 referring to a pair of long, curved canines on upper jaw that close outside the mouth
Subfamily CARAPINAE Fierasfers
Carapus Rafinesque 1810 latinization of carapo, local Brazilian name for knifefishes (Gymnotiformes), reflecting Rafinesque’s belief that two groups of fishes, based on a superficial resemblance, are related
Carapus acus (Brünnich 1768) needle, referring to its elongate, acute body
Carapus bermudensis (Jones 1874) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Bermuda, type locality (but widely distributed in western Atlantic from North Carolina south to Brazil, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico)
Carapus dubius (Putnam 1874) doubtful, presumably referring to Putnam’s concern that if morphological variability exhibited within this species is shared by other species in the genus, then some of them “may prove to be unworthy of specific rank”
Carapus mourlani (Petit 1934) in honor of documentary filmmaker Roger Mourlan (1912-1987), Petit’s “young companion” (translation) on expedition that collected type
Carapus sluiteri (Weber 1905) in honor of tunicate specialist Carel Philip Sluiter (1854-1933), who discovered the only known specimen of this fish inside the body of Polycarpa aurata (variously known as the Ox Heart Ascidian, the Gold-mouth Sea Squirt or the Ink-spot Sea Squirt)
Echiodon Thompson 1837 echis, adder; odon, tooth; according to Thompson (1839), referring to two large teeth on upper jaw, “resembling serpents’ fangs”
Echiodon anchipterus Williams 1984 anchi-, near; pterus, fin, referring to position of anus near pectoral-fin base
Echiodon atopus Anderson 2005 out of place, referring to Anderson’s original expectation that the type specimen belonged to the circumglobal E. cryomargarites
Echiodon coheni Williams 1984 in honor of Daniel M. Cohen (1930-2017), Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, for his contributions to ophidiiform systematics, and for encouragement and assistance given to Williams
Echiodon cryomargarites Markle, Williams & Olney 1983 kryos, cold, referring to its Antarctic distribution; margarites, pearl, i.e., a pearlfish
Echiodon dawsoni Williams & Shipp 1982 in honor of Charles E. Dawson (1922-1993), Gulf Coast Research Laboratory (Ocean Springs, Mississippi, USA), for his many contributions to ichthyology (he also provided specimens and radiographs to the authors)
Echiodon dentatus (Cuvier 1829) toothed, referring to two large teeth on upper jaw
Echiodon drummondii Thompson 1837 in honor of Irish physician-naturalist -botanist James Lawson Drummond (1783-1853), who discovered the type specimen dead on a beach
Echiodon exsilium Rosenblatt 1961 an exile, referring to its geographic isolation (Gulf of California, México) from other members of the genus known at the time (North Atlantic, Mediterranean)
Echiodon neotes Markle & Olney 1990 youth, described from what appears to be a larval specimen that is not referable to any known species of the genus
Echiodon pegasus Markle & Olney 1990 named after Pegasus Bight, Auckland Islands, New Zealand, type locality
Echiodon prionodon Parmentier 2012 prion, saw; odon, tooth, referring to serrated margin on posterior edge of fangs
Echiodon pukaki Markle & Olney 1990 named for Pukaki Rise, New Zealand, type locality
Echiodon rendahli (Whitley 1941) in honor of Hialmar Rendahl (1891-1969), zoologist and artist, who collected larval Echiodon in the Tasman Sea, which Whitley used in his description
Encheliophis Müller 1842 enchelys, ancient Greek for eel, presumably referring to eel-like shape of E. vermiculatus; ophis, snake, possibly referring to body shape and/or presumed relationship with Ophidion (Ophidiidae)
Encheliophis boraborensis (Kaup 1856) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Bora Bora Island, Society Islands (French Polynesia, South Pacific), type locality
Encheliophis chardewalli Parmentier 2004 a combination of the surnames of Michel Chardon and Pierre Vandewalle, both of the University of Liège (Belgium), for their “scientific accomplishments” in ichthyology
Encheliophis gracilis (Bleeker 1856) slender, referring to its very compressed and elongate body
Encheliophis homei (Richardson 1846) in honor of surgeon-naturalist Everard Home (1756-1832), for his “zeal” in collecting “objects of Natural History” along the coasts of China and Australia (possibly including type of this species)
Encheliophis sagamianus (Tanaka 1908) –anus, belonging to: Sagami Bay, Japan, type locality
Encheliophis vermicularis Müller 1842 worm-like, presumably referring to its body shape
Encheliophis vermiops Markle & Olney 1990 vermis, worm; ops, face, referring to “general appearance” of the head
Eurypleuron Markle & Olney 1990 eurys, wide; pleuron, rib, referring to expanded, plate-like parapophyses on thoracic vertebrae, a sexually dimorphic character of males of this genus
Eurypleuron owasianum (Matsubara 1953) –anus, belonging to: off the coast of Owase (also spelled Owasi), Mie Prefecture, Japan, type locality
Onuxodon Smith 1955 onyx, talon; odon, referring to recurved, sharp fangs of O. parvibrachium, “exactly resembling the sheathed claws of a cat”
Onuxodon albometeori Koeda 2019 albus, white, i.e., of a white meteor, referring to whitish coloration and very elongated, posteriorly shallowing body, presumably like the tail of meteor as it enters Earth’s atmosphere
Onuxodon fowleri (Smith 1955) in honor of Henry Weed Fowler (1878-1965), Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, who misidentified this species as Jordanicus caninus (=Carapus dubius) in 1927
Onuxodon margaritiferae (Rendahl 1921) margarita, pearl; fero, to bear, referring to its being found in the mantle of a large pearl-bearing mussel
Onuxodon parvibrachium (Fowler 1927) parvus, small; brachium, arm, referring to its short pectoral fins
Subfamily TETRAGONDACNINAE Square-mouthed Pearlfishes
Tetragondacnus Anderson & Satria 2007 tetragonos, square; dakno, to bite, referring to squarish shape of open mouth
Tetragondacnus spilotus Anderson & Satria 2007 spotted or stained, referring to large dark blotches on body
Subfamily HYPOPLEURONINAE Whiptailed Pearlfish
Hypopleuron Smith & Radcliffe 1913 hypo-, under or beneath; pleuron, rib, presumably referring to broad and inflated parapophyses, which form a large bony case nearly enclosing cavity normally occupied by air bladder
Hypopleuron caninum Smith & Radcliffe 1913 canine, referring to a canine tooth at front of each upper jaw bone
Family OPHIDIIDAE Cusk-eels
48 genera · 289 species
Subfamily BROTULINAE Bearded Cusk-eels
Taxonomic note: treated as a full family by some workers.
Brotula Cuvier 1829 brótula, Spanish name for B. barbata
Brotula barbata (Bloch & Schneider 1801) bearded, referring to six barbels on snout and six on chin
Brotula clarkae Hubbs 1944 in honor of Frances N. Clark (1894-1987), “accomplished” fisheries researcher of the California State Fisheries Laboratory, who provided type specimens
Brotula flaviviridis Greenfield 2005 flavus, golden yellow; viridis, green, referring to its yellow-green color
Brotula multibarbata Temminck & Schlegel 1846 multi-, many; barbata, bearded, presumably referring to its having more barbels (six on snout, six on chin) compared to presumed Japanese congeners known at the time
Brotula ordwayi Hildebrand & Barton 1949 in honor of Samuel H. Ordway, Jr., (1900-1971), lawyer, conservationist and the “judicious trustee” of the New York Zoological Society
Brotula phenax Prokofiev 2007 imposter, referring to close similarity with B. multibarbata
Brotula townsendi Fowler 1900 in honor of the “celebrated naturalist and traveler” John Kirk Townsend (1809-1851), who collected type in 1834
Subfamily BROTULOTAENIINAE Prickle Cusk-eels
Brotulotaenia Parr 1933 taenia, band or ribbon, referring to “strong compressed, ribbon-like” body of B. nigra; brotula, then placed in the family Brotulidae
Brotulotaenia brevicauda Cohen 1974 brevis, short; cauda, tail, allusion not explained nor evident, perhaps referring to how body tapers more quickly to the tail than in B. crassa and B. nigra
Brotulotaenia crassa Parr 1934 thick, fat or stout, referring to deeper body compared to B. nigra
Brotulotaenia nielseni Cohen 1974 in honor of Jørgen G. Nielsen (b. 1932), Zoological Museum of Copenhagen, for his contributions to the knowledge of ophidioid fishes
Brotulotaenia nigra Parr 1933 black, referring to “deep black” exterior, interior lining of mouth and gill cavity, peritoneum, and outer mesenteries
Subfamily OPHIDIINAE
Cherublemma Trotter 1926 cherub, etymology not explained, perhaps referring to cherub-like profile of head (Trotter compared it to a “pug-dog’s”); lemma, according to Trotter, “a subject for discussion or doubt,” allusion not explained nor evident
Cherublemma emmelas (Gilbert 1890) em-, within; melas, black, referring to jet-black roof of mouth, gill cavity lining and peritoneum
Chilara Jordan & Evermann 1896 modern Greek name of the species of Ophidion and Rissola (now a synonym of Ophidion)
Chilara taylori (Girard 1858) in honor of Alexander Smith Taylor (1817-1876), a collector, author and historian of California and other western U.S. topics, who collected type
Genypterus Philippi 1857 genys, chin; pterus, fin, referring to anterior position of ventral fins, inserted at chin or throat
Genypterus blacodes (Forster 1801) blaco-, dull; –odes, having the form of, i.e., sluggish, “very voracious, but torpid and lazy, resting on the rocky bottom of the sea” (translation)
Genypterus brasiliensis Regan 1903 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, type locality
Genypterus capensis (Smith 1847) –ensis, suffix denoting place: the Cape Colony, referring to type locality at what is now South Africa
Genypterus chilensis (Guichenot 1848) –ensis, suffix denoting place: off the coast of Chile at Copiapó, type locality
Genypterus maculatus (Tschudi 1846) spotted, referring to more or less contiguous light spots on sides [objectively invalid, preoccupied by Ophidium maculatum Rafinesque 1810; treated as valid while a petition is pending]
Genypterus tigerinus Klunzinger 1872 tiger-like, presumably referring to its color pattern, brown, mottled with black flecks
Lepophidium Gill 1895 related to Ophidion (often and incorrectly spelled Ophidium) but with lepis, scales, on head
Lepophidium aporrhox Robins 1961 Greek for broken off, referring to its “stocky proportions”
Lepophidium brevibarbe (Cuvier 1829) brevis, short; barbus, barbel, referring to its shorter barbels compared to Brotula barbata and Parophidion vassali, its presumed congeners at the time
Lepophidium collettei Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 in honor of friend and longtime colleague Bruce B. Collette (b. 1934), Director, National Marine Fisheries Service Systematics Laboratory, who made special efforts to collect cusk-eels for the senior author and who collected most of the material of this species
Lepophidium crossotum Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 fringed, referring to its fringed snout
Lepophidium cultratum Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 knife-shaped, referring to its overall body shape (which isn’t much different from most other Lepophidium, Robert H. Robins, pers. comm.)
Lepophidium entomelan Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 entos, within; melan, black, referring to very dark orobranchial region and gut
Lepophidium gilmorei Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 in honor of fish ecologist R. Grant Gilmore, for helping the first author in many ways (two specimens, including holotype, were collected from the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution’s submersibles, dives participated in by both Gilmore and the first author)
Lepophidium hubbsi Robins & Lea 1978 in honor of Carl L. Hubbs (1894-1979), “whose second scientific paper concerned a new cuskeel from the eastern Pacific, in recognition of his many contributions to ichthyology and zoogeography”
Lepophidium inca Robins & Lea 1978 proposed as a Peruvian subspecies of L. microlepis, named for the Inca tribe of Peru
Lepophidium jeannae Fowler 1941 in honor of malacologist Jeanne Sanderson Schwengel (1889-1961), who collected type while dredging for molluscs
Lepophidium kallion Robins 1959 more beautiful, referring to its distinctive color pattern in contrast to more drab congeners known at the time
Lepophidium marmoratum (Goode & Bean 1885) marbled, referring to olive-brown marbling on upper half of body
Lepophidium microlepis (Gilbert 1890) micro-, small; lepis, scale, referring to much smaller scales than the closely related L. prorates
Lepophidium negropinna Hildebrand & Barton 1949 negro-, black; pinna, fin, referring to black outer edge of dorsal fin black and/or blackish caudal and anal fins
Lepophidium pardale (Gilbert 1890) leopard, referring to small black spots on dorsal outline and a series of round spots nearly as large as eye along middle of sides
Lepophidium pheromystax Robins 1960 phero– (or fero-), to bear; mystax, mustache, referring to dark streak on each maxilla
Lepophidium profundorum (Gill 1863) of the depths, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to capture of type specimen at 54.86 m (not particularly deep as far as deepwater fishes go)
Lepophidium prorates (Jordan & Bollman 1890) prow-bearing, referring to strong spine on tip of snout
Lepophidium robustum Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 robust, referring to its stout body
Lepophidium staurophor Robins 1959 stauros, cross; phoros, bearer, referring to cross-like marking on dorsum
Lepophidium stigmatistium (Gilbert 1890) stigmatus, marked; histion, sail, referring to large black blotch on anterior rays of dorsal fin
Lepophidium wileyi Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 in honor of ichthyologist Edward O. Wiley (b. 1944), who welcomed the first author into the Kansas University Natural History Museum’s Ichthyology Division following his retirement from academe
Lepophidium zophochir Robins, Robins & Brown 2012 zophos, darkness; cheir, hand, referring to blackish pectoral fin
Ophidion Linnaeus 1758 an ancient name meaning small snake, presumably referring to snake- or eel-like shape of O. barbatum
Ophidion antipholus Lea & Robins 2003 from William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, alluding to the brothers Antipholus, whose identities were confused throughout the play, referring to how this species had been widely and incorrectly reported as O. beani, a junior synonym of O. holbrooki (see also O. dromio and O. puck)
Ophidion asiro (Jordan & Fowler 1902) vernacular name for this species in Japan
Ophidion barbatum Linnaeus 1758 bearded, referring to its four chin barbels (which are, in fact, anterior ventral fins, forked into barbel-like organs)
Ophidion dromio Lea & Robins 2003 from William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, alluding to the brothers Dromio, whose identities were confused throughout the play, referring to how this species had been widely and incorrectly reported as O. beani, a junior synonym of O. holbrooki (see also O. antipholus and O. puck)
Ophidion exul Robins 1991 exile, referring to its isolated geographic position (Easter Island and Marquesas Islands)
Ophidion fulvum (Hildebrand & Barton 1949) brown, referring to its “uniform brown” color
Ophidion galapagensis Lea & Robins 2024 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: endemic to the Galápagos Archipelago and the outlying Isla del Coco
Ophidion galeoides (Gilbert 1890) –oides, having the form of: galeus, Greek for weasel, an ancient name for sharks perhaps alluding to what some may have perceived as a weasel-like body or pointed snout, allusion not explained nor evident
Ophidion genyopus (Ogilby 1897) genys, chin; pous, foot, i.e., ventral or pelvic fin, referring to their insertion below anterior third of orbit
Ophidion grayi (Fowler 1948) in honor of Capt. William B. Gray (Marineland, Florida, USA), who collected type and sent it to Fowler
Ophidion guianense Lea & Robins 2003 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Guiana, the presumed center of its distribution
Ophidion holbrookii Putnam 1874 in memory of the late John E. Holbrook (1796-1871), physician and naturalist, “to whom science is deeply indebted for the results of his labors on the reptiles of North America and on the fishes of our southern waters, and one whose memory is deeply cherished by those who were honored with his friendship” [although holbrookii is correct, prevailing usage may permit the continued use of holbrooki as the correct original spelling]
Ophidion imitator Lea 1997 from imitor, to imitate, emulate, mimic or resemble, referring to its “striking resemblance” to Lepophidium pardale and, to a lesser degree, Otophidium indefatigabile
Ophidion iris Breder 1936 named for its “unusual” iris, in which upper but not lower part is black
Ophidion josephi Girard 1858 of St. Joseph Island, Texas, USA, type locality
Ophidion lagochila (Böhlke & Robins 1959) lagos, hare; cheilos, lip, i.e., harelip, referring to “dissected character” of snout tip and preorbital margin
Ophidion lozanoi Matallanas 1990 in honor of Luis Lozano Rey (1878-1958), University of Madrid, a “pioneer” in modern Spanish ichthyology
Ophidion marginatum DeKay 1842 margined, referring to dorsal and anal fins edged with black
Ophidion metoecus Robins 1991 Greek for sojourner or settler, presumably referring to its being known only from Isla Robinson Crusoe (=Mas a Tierra) in the Juan Fernandez Islands and Isla San Felix in the eastern Pacific off Chile
Ophidion muraenolepis Günther 1880 muraena, Latin for moray eel but used here as term for eels in general; lepis, scale, referring to extremely small scales, “not imbricate, elongate, and obliquely arranged as in an eel”
Ophidion nocomis Robins & Böhlke 1959 Native American word meaning “daughter of the moon,” referring to pallid coloration [Nookomis is the name of a grandmother in traditional stories among the indigenous Ojibwe people of North America and was made famous in Longfellow’s 1855 epic poem “The Song of Hiawatha,” in which a major female character named Nokomis falls from the moon]
Ophidion puck Lea & Robins 2003 Puck, a “tricky fairy” in the service of King Oberon in William Shakespeare’s A Midsummers Night’s Dream, one of three Shakespearean names coined in the same paper (see O. antipholus and O. dromio), indicating that these species are “part of a larger story”
Ophidion robinsi Fahay 1992 in honor of C. Richard Robins (1928-2020), University of Miami, for his many contributions to ophidiid taxonomy and his assistance “unraveling the mystery” of this species and its larvae
Ophidion rochei Müller 1845 in honor of François-Etienne Delaroche (1780-1813), Swiss physician-naturalist, who wrote about the swim-bladder anatomy of O. barbatum in 1809
Ophidion saldanhai Matallanas & Brito 1999 in honor of Portuguese ichthyologist Luiz Saldanha (1937-1997), for his “notable” scientific contributions to the knowledge of the fishes of the Eastern Atlantic
Ophidion scrippsae (Hubbs 1916) in honor of journalist and philanthropist Ellen B. Scripps (1836-1932), “whose generous gifts to the Scripps Institution have been a great help in the study of the zoology of Southern California”
Ophidion selenops Robins & Böhlke 1959 selene, moon; ops, eye, referring to its large, silver-colored eyes
Ophidion smithi (Fowler 1934) in honor of Andrew Smith (1797-1872), Scottish military physician, explorer, ethnologist and zoologist, author of “Zoology of South Africa” (1838-1850) and the first to describe an ophidiid from the Cape (Genypterus capensis in 1847)
Ophidion zavalai Rotundo, Caires, Oliveira, Kuranaka, Figueiredo-Filho & Marceniuk 2023 in honor of Peruvian-born Brazilian ichthyologist Luis Alberto Zavala-Camin (1938-2023), researcher at the Instituto de Pesca, São Paulo, Brazil, and professor at the Universidade Santa Cecília in Santos, Brazil, for his “great” contribution to the knowledge of marine fishes in Brazil
Otophidium Gill 1885 oto-, ear, i.e., differing from Ophidium (alternate but incorrect spelling of Ophidion) in the presence of a sharp, concealed spine on opercle
Otophidium chickcharney Böhlke & Robins 1959 chickcharnies, legendary ghosts of the Bahamas (where it is endemic), referring to pallid coloration and appearance of its large eyes when viewed from above
Otophidium dormitator Böhlke & Robins 1959 sleeper; this name “is employed since this species was not at first distinguished from O. chickcharney”
Otophidium indefatigabile Jordan & Bollman 1890 named for Indefatigable (now Santa Cruz) Island, Galápagos Islands, type locality
Otophidium omostigma (Jordan & Gilbert 1882) omos, shoulder; stigma, mark, referring to intensely black, round blotch on scapular region, larger than pupil
Parophidion Tortonese 1954 para-, near, referring to similarity to and previous placement of P. vassali in Ophidion
Parophidion schmidti (Woods & Kanazawa 1951) in honor of herpetologist Karl P. Schmidt (1890-1957), Chief Curator, Department of Zoology, Chicago Natural History Museum, “who took especial interest” in the plans for the [Bermuda] expedition that collected this species
Parophidion vassali (Risso 1810) in honor of physicist Antonio Vassalli Eandi (1761-1825, also known as Anton Vassali Eandi), University of Turin, as a token of Risso’s esteem [Risso spelled the fish’s name with one “l” but in his dedication spelled Vassalli’s name with two; Risso often dropped the patronymic “i” (e.g., Notacanthus bonaparte), making the name a noun in apposition]
Raneya Robins 1961 in honor of Edward C. Raney (1909-1984), Cornell University, who introduced Robins to ichthyology
Raneya brasiliensis (Kaup 1856) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Brazil (southwestern Atlantic), type locality
Subfamily NEOBYTHITINAE
Abyssobrotula Nielsen 1977 abyss, the deep, at 8370 m, the deepest-living fish known at the time; brotula, then placed in the family Brotulidae
Abyssobrotula galatheae Nielsen 1977 in honor of the Danish research vessel Galathea, which captured type in 1952
Abyssobrotula hadropercularis Ohashi & Nielsen 2016 hadros, bulky; opercularis, gill cover, referring to its “robust” opercle, with a strong and pointed opercular spine (compared to flat and weak opercular spine in A. galatheae)
Acanthonus Günther 1878 acanthus, spine, referring to strong spines on head and opercles; onus, presumably a latinization of onos, a name dating to Aristotle, originally referring to Phycis blennoides (Gadidae) but often applied to Merluccius merluccius (Merlucciidae) and hence used several times by Günther as a suffix for a hake-like fish (also the Greek word for ass or donkey, which explains why A. armatus is sometimes called the “Bony-eared Assfish”) [placed in its own family, Acanthonidae, by some workers]
Acanthonus armatus Günther 1878 armed with a weapon, referring to strong spines on head and opercles
Acanthonus hextii (Alcock 1890) according to Alcock (1902), in honor of Rear-Admiral John Hext (1842-1924), Director of the Royal Indian Marine, for his generous support of the HMS Investigator expedition to the Arabian Sea, during which type was collected
Acanthonus myersi (Cohen 1961) in honor of George S. Myers (1905-1985), Stanford University, Cohen’s teacher in ichthyology
Alcockia Goode & Bean 1896 –ia, belonging to: Alfred William Alcock (1859-1933), surgeon-naturalist aboard the Indian marine-survey steamer Investigator, for “so many important additions to our knowledge of the bathybial fauna of the Indian Ocean”
Alcockia rostrata (Günther 1887) beaked, referring to depressed snout, with its central portion slightly produced, overlapping lower jaw
Apagesoma Carter 1983 apages, flaccid; soma, body, referring to its flabby body (reduced body tissue and increased water content make it a slow swimmer, presumably an adaptation to conserve energy in its food-poor deep-sea habitat)
Apagesoma australe Nielsen, King & Møller 2008 southern, referring to southerly position of type locality (Crozet Islands, southern Indian Ocean)
Apagesoma delosommatum (Hureau, Staiger & Nielsen 1979) delos, readily seen; ommatus, eyed, referring to very small eyes, placed forward on the head, but still “readily seen”
Apagesoma edentatum Carter 1983 toothless, referring to absence of vomerine and basibranchial tooth patches
Barathrites Zugmayer 1911 an animal of barathron, the abyss, referring to deep-sea habitat of B. iris (in Greek mythology, the Barathron was a deep pit at Athens into which living and executed criminals were cast)
Barathrites iris Zugmayer 1911 rainbow, referring to its coloration: a transparent milky color with shades of violet, yellow and blue, described by Zugmayer in a follow-up description as seeming to “blend like the colors of the spectrum” (translation)
Barathrites parri Nybelin 1957 in honor of marine biologist Albert Eide Parr (1900-1991), who misidentified this species as B. iris in 1933
Barathrodemus Goode & Bean 1883 barathron, the abyss (in Greek mythology, the Barathron was a deep pit at Athens into which living and executed criminals were cast); demos, people, i.e., a dweller of the depths, referring to deep-sea habitat of B. manatinus
Barathrodemus manatinus Goode & Bean 1883 manatee-like, referring to snout, “much dilated and swollen, … in general form resembling that of a manatee”
Barathrodemus nasutus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 large-nosed, referring to its snout, “much produced and dilated, overhanging mouth”
Bassogigas Goode & Bean 1896 bassus, deep, referring to deep-sea habitat of B. gillii (collected at 2022 m); gigas, giant, presumably referring to its size, up to 85 cm
Bassogigas gillii Goode & Bean 1896 in honor of Smithsonian zoologist Theodore Gill (1837-1914), who first recognized (and named) this genus in an unpublished manuscript
Bassogigas walkeri Nielsen & Møller 2011 in honor of Harold J. Walker, Jr., Collection Manager, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, for his “invaluable help over several years” and for loaning type specimen
Bassozetus Gill 1883 bassus, deep; zetetes, seeker, presumably referring to deep-sea habitat of B. normalis, collected at 2844 m
Bassozetus compressus (Günther 1878) referring to its “strongly compressed” head, body and tail
Bassozetus elongatus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 referring to its “slenderer, more elongate body” compared to B. robustus
Bassozetus galatheae Nielsen & Merrett 2000 in honor of the Danish research vessel Galathea, which captured paratypes in 1951
Bassozetus glutinosus (Alcock 1890) glutinous, referring to think layer of mucous under skin
Bassozetus levistomatus Machida 1989 levis, smooth; stomatus, mouthed, referring to toothless prevomerine head and absence of median basibranchial tooth patch
Bassozetus mozambiquensis Tomiyama, Takami & Fukui 2016 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Mozambique Channel, western Indian Ocean, type locality
Bassozetus multispinis Shcherbachev 1980 multi-, many; spinus, spine, referring to its high gill raker count, characteristic for this species
Bassozetus nasus Garman 1899 nose, referring to “swollen” snout, “rather high and thick, with a median ridge and a prominence behind each nostril”
Bassozetus nielseni Tomiyama, Takami & Fukui 2018 in honor of Jørgen G. Nielsen (b. 1932), Zoological Museum of Copenaghen, for his “excellent” work on the taxonomy of ophidiid fishes, including the genus Bassozetus
Bassozetus normalis Gill 1883 normal or according to rule, allusion not explained nor evident
Bassozetus oncerocephalus (Vaillant 1888) oncero-, swollen; cephalus, head, referring to rounded, swollen head of fresh specimens, “to the point of not showing any projections of the skull” (translation)
Bassozetus robustus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 referring to its robust body anteriorly, more robust than the type of B. compressus
Bassozetus squamosus Tomiyama, Takami & Fukui 2021 scaly (i.e., with many scales), referring to large number (44-47) of oblique scale rows
Bassozetus taenia (Günther 1887) ribbon or band, allusion not explained, presumably referring to shape of body: “the whole fish, and especially the tail, is much attenuated”
Bassozetus trachibranchus Tomiyama, Takami & Fukui 2021 trachys, coarse or rough; branchos, gill, referring to large number of small tooth patches on outer ridges of 2nd to 4th lower gill-arch limbs
Bassozetus werneri Nielsen & Merrett 2000 in honor of Werner Schwarzhans, retired oil geologist turned ichthyologist-paleontologist (University of Copenhagen, Natural History Museum), for his contributions to the understanding of ophidiiform otoliths
Bassozetus zenkevitchi Rass 1955 in honor of Soviet oceanographer Lev Aleksandrovich Zenkevich (1889-1970), who led the R/V Vitiaz cruise that collected type
Bathyonus Goode & Bean 1885 bathys, deep, referring to deep-sea habitat; onus, presumably latinization of onos, a name dating to Aristotle, originally referring to Phycis blennoides (Gadidae) but often applied to Merluccius merluccius (Merlucciidae) and hence often used as a suffix for a hake-like fish [replacement name for Bathynectes Günther 1878, preoccupied in Crustacea]
Bathyonus caudalis (Garman 1899) of the tail, referring to how caudal fin extends forward, uniting with dorsal- and anal-fin bases, ¾ as long as head
Bathyonus laticeps (Günther 1878) latus, broad; ceps, head, presumably referring to “very wide” mouth
Bathyonus pectoralis Goode & Bean 1885 referring to pectoral fins, in which the penultimate rays extend to 13th ray of anal fin, nearly twice as long as head
Benthocometes Goode & Bean 1896 benthos, the depths; cometes, inhabitant, i.e., a “dweller of the depths,” referring to its habitat, collected as deep as 732 m
Benthocometes australiensis Nielsen 2010 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off Western Australia, type locality
Benthocometes robustus (Goode & Bean 1886) robust or heavy bodied, referring to its “short and deep” body
Dannevigia Whitley 1941 –ia, belonging to: Harold Christian Dannevig (1860-1914), Director of Fisheries for Australia, who collected type [he was lost at sea when his fisheries research vessel disappeared without a trace]
Dannevigia tusca Whitley 1941 latinization of its common name, Australian Tusk; Dannevig, who collected type, said it was similar to the European Tusk [Brosme brosme, Gadiformes: Lotidae] and gave it the tusk name (tusk being a variation of cusk)
Dicrolene Goode & Bean 1883 dicro-, forked; olene, forearm, presumably referring to pectoral fins of D. introniger, in which several lower rays are separate and very much produced
Dicrolene filamentosa Garman 1899 referring to ventral-fin rays, which have the “appearance of a simple filamentary ray but [are] composed of two segmented unequal rays bound together”
Dicrolene gregoryi Trotter 1926 in honor of zoologist William K. Gregory (1876-1970), Associate in Vertebrates on the Arcturus Oceanographic Expedition, during which type was collected (Trotter was Gregory’s assistant)
Dicrolene hubrechti Weber 1913 in honor of Dutch zoologist Ambrosius Hubrecht (1853-1915), who played a significant role in the formation of the Siboga Indonesian expedition (1898-1899), during which type was collected
Dicrolene introniger Goode & Bean 1883 intro, within; niger, black, allusion not explained nor evident; usually this adjective is used to connote a dark buccal or branchial cavity, but we have not yet seen an account of this species that mentions such a character
Dicrolene kanazawai Grey 1958 in honor of ichthyologist Robert H. Kanazawa (1916-1985), U.S. National Museum, for his help, “over a long period of time, in supplying measurements and counts of various fishes”
Dicrolene longimana Smith & Radcliffe 1913 longus, long; manus, hand, referring to lower, separate rays of pectoral fin, which are long and filamentous
Dicrolene mesogramma Shcherbachev 1980 meso-, middle; gramme, line, referring to position of lateral line along middle (mid-side) of body vs. close to dorsal surface in other species
Dicrolene multifilis (Alcock 1889) multi-, many; filis, thread, presumably referring to 8-10 detached and long pectoral-fin rays and/or ventral-fin rays, described as “bifid filaments”
Dicrolene nigra Garman 1899 black, color of large individuals
Dicrolene nigricaudis (Alcock 1891) nigri-, black; caudis, tail, referring to chocolate color of posterior third of tail
Dicrolene pallidus Hureau & Nielsen 1981 pale, referring to its “clear” (translation) body coloration
Dicrolene pullata Garman 1899 clothed in dark garments, referring to its uniform black coloration
Dicrolene quinquarius (Günther 1887) consisting of five, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to five detached rays of pectoral fin, somewhat longer than the other rays
Dicrolene tristis Smith & Radcliffe 1913 sad, mournful, or dark or dull in color or tone, presumably referring to its color in alcohol: “Tawny olive; opercular region, branchiostegals, and fins dark clove brown; peritoneum dark chestnut brown”
Dicrolene vaillanti (Alcock 1890) in honor of Léon Vaillant (1834-1914), zoologist, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), who misidentified this species as D. introniger in 1888
Enchelybrotula Smith & Radcliffe 1913 enchelys, ancient Greek for eel, referring to anguilliform body of E. paucidens, i.e., an eel-like brotula
Enchelybrotula gomoni Cohen 1982 in honor of Martin F. Gomon (b. 1945), senior curator of fishes, Museum Victoria, who first identified the types as specimens of Enchelybrotula and called Cohen’s attention to them
Enchelybrotula paucidens Smith & Radcliffe 1913 paucus, few; dens, teeth, referring to teeth in single rows on jaws, vomer and palatines (compared to multiple rows of teeth on the similar Bassogigas)
Epetriodus Cohen & Nielsen 1978 epetrion, needle; odous, tooth, referring to its sharp, needle-like teeth
Epetriodus freddyi Cohen & Nielsen 1978 in honor of ichthyologist Norman Bertram “Freddy” Marshall (1915-1996), British Museum (Natural History), for his contributions to the knowledge of deep-sea fishes
Eretmichthys Garman 1899 eretmon, oar or paddle, referring to pectoral fins, “very long and rigid, forming a long oarlike sweep, the function of which may be of sexual rather than of motor importance”; ichthys, fish
Eretmichthys pinnatus Garman 1899 winged, presumably referring to its long, oar-like pectoral fins
Glyptophidium Alcock 1889 glyptos, engraved, presumably referring to head bones of G. argenteus, “soft and cavernous, with prominent outstanding crests”; Ophidium (alternate and incorrect spelling of Ophidion), type genus of family
Glyptophidium argenteum Alcock 1889 silvery, color of head and body, with “silvery grey” fins
Glyptophidium japonicum Kamohara 1936 Japanese, described from a specimen acquired at Mimase Market, Kochi, Tosa Province (now Kochi Prefecture), Japan
Glyptophidium longipes Norman 1939 longus, long; pes, foot, referring to long ventral-fin rays, at least 1½ times length of head
Glyptophidium lucidum Smith & Radcliffe 1913 bright or shining, presumably referring to “silvery glints” on body
Glyptophidium macropus Alcock 1894 macro-, long; pous, foot, presumably referring to ventral fins, each consisting of two long rays
Glyptophidium oceanium Smith & Radcliffe 1913 the sea, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to its capture from deeper water (563 m) compared to G. lucidum (421 m)
Holcomycteronus Garman 1899 holkos, furrow, grove or track, and mykter, nose, referring to sensory papillae in groove in nostrils of H. digittatus; onus, presumably latinization of onos, a name dating to Aristotle, originally referring to Phycis blennoides (Gadidae) but often applied to Merluccius merluccius (Merlucciidae) and hence often used as a suffix for a hake-like fish
Holcomycteronus aequatoris (Smith & Radcliffe 1913) equatorial, referring to type locality, Gulf of Tomini, Sulawesi, Indonesia, just eight minutes south of Equator
Holcomycteronus brucei (Dollo 1906) in honor of Scottish oceanographer William Speirs Bruce (1867-1921), leader of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (1902-1904), during which type was collected
Holcomycteronus digittatus Garman 1899 having fingers, presumably referring to pectoral-fin rays, “very flexible, with five or six of the lower rays free for about half of their length”
Holcomycteronus profundissimus (Roule 1913) deepest, captured at 6035 m, believed to be the deepest-known ophidiiform fish at the time
Holcomycteronus pterotus (Alcock 1890) finned, referring to long, feathery pectoral fins, which reach anal-fin origin
Holcomycteronus squamosus (Roule 1916) scaly, referring to its more-prounounced scales compared to H. profundissimus
Homostolus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 etymology not explained, perhaps homos, same, and stolos, voyage or expedition, referring to H. acer being “found in the same general regions” as specimens of Glyptophidium sampled during the same cruise of the fisheries steamer Albatross
Homostolus acer Smith & Radcliffe 1913 sharp, presumably referring to elongate, sharply pointed and compressed head
Hoplobrotula Gill 1863 hoplon, armor, presumably referring to three preopercular spines of H. armata, i.e., an armed (or armored) brotula
Hoplobrotula armata (Temminck & Schlegel 1846) armed with a weapon, referring to its opercular and preopercular spines
Hoplobrotula badia Machida 1990 deep brown, referring to head and body coloration
Hoplobrotula gnathopus (Regan 1921) gnathus, jaw; pous, foot, referring to ventral fins “inserted at middle of length of lower jaw”
Lamprogrammus Alcock 1891 lampros, bright; gramme, line, referring to conspicuous lateral line of L. niger, with enlarged scales, each of which bears a glandular (luminous) organ
Lamprogrammus brunswigi (Brauer 1906) patronym not identified, probably in honor of H. Brunswig, first officer aboard the research vessel Valdivia, the first German expedition to explore the deep sea, during which type was collected
Lamprogrammus exutus Nybelin & Poll 1958 bared or stripped, referring to how yellowish-white color of type specimen may actually be an artifact of its missing dark-brown scales
Lamprogrammus fragilis Alcock 1892 fragile or brittle; provisionally proposed by Alcock, who noted that it may be conspecific with L. niger, which he described as having “fragile” tissue with deciduous scales
Lamprogrammus niger Alcock 1891 black, referring to “uniform jet-black” coloration in fresh specimens
Lamprogrammus shcherbachevi Cohen & Rohr 1993 in honor of Yuri Nikolayevich Shcherbachev (Institute of Oceanology, Academy of Sciences of the USSR), colleague, shipmate and “master of deepsea ichthyology”
Leptobrotula Nielsen 1986 leptos, thin, i.e., a thin brotula, referring to its high, compressed body
Leptobrotula breviventralis Nielsen 1986 brevis, short; ventralis, ventral, referring to its short ventral fins, shorter than diameter of orbit
Leucicorus Garman 1899 leukos, white; korys, helmet, referring to white areas (mucous channels and cavities) on head of L. lusciosus
Leucicorus atlanticus Nielsen 1975 –icus, belonging to: an Atlantic species of a genus heretofore known only from the Pacific
Leucicorus gerringerae Schwarzhans, Nielsen & Mundy 2022 in honor of Mackenzie Gerringer, State University of New York at Geneseo (USA), for her contribution to the knowledge of the biology of hadal fishes
Leucicorus lentibus Schwarzhans, Nielsen & Mundy 2022 Latin for lens bearing, referring to large eye lens, at least of 50% of black eye diameter
Leucicorus lusciosus Garman 1899 dim-sighted, referring to its rudimentary eyes
Luciobrotula Smith & Radcliffe 1913 lucius, pike (Esociformes: Esox), referring to “pike-like” head of L. bartschi, i.e., a “pike brotula”
Luciobrotula bartschi Smith & Radcliffe 1913 in honor of Paul Bartsch (1871-1960), assistant curator, U.S. National Museum of Natural History, Division of Mollusks, member of the Albatross Philippine expedition that collected type
Luciobrotula brasiliensis Nielsen 2009 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off Bahia, Brazil, type locality
Luciobrotula coheni Nielsen 2009 in honor of Daniel M. Cohen (1930-2017), Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, “through many years a good friend and an inspiring colleague who has written a number of excellent papers, especially dealing with the ophidiiform fishes”
Luciobrotula corethromycter Cohen 1964 korethron, broom; mykter, nose, referring to tuft at end of nose
Luciobrotula lineata (Gosline 1954) lined, referring to linear fleshy ridges on front of snout and lower jaw
Luciobrotula nolfi Cohen 1981 in honor of ichthyopaleontologist Dirk Nolf, who called Cohen’s attention to the fact that Luciobrotula from the eastern and western Atlantic are different and who graciously provided the information on otoliths included in Cohen’s paper
Luciobrotula polylepis Wong, Lee & Chen 2021 poly, many; lepis, scale, referring to much longer lateral line and therefore more lateral line scales compared with L. bartschi, the only congener distributed in the West Pacific
Mastigopterus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 mastigos, whip; pterus, fin, referring to pectoral fins “produced into a long, whip-like organ, without detached rays”
Mastigopterus imperator Smith & Radcliffe 1913 emporer, commander, ruler or general, allusion not explained nor evident
Monomitopus Alcock 1890 mono-, one; mitos, thread; opus, foot, referring to two ventral fin-rays of M.nigripinnis, fused to form a single filament
Monomitopus agassizii (Goode & Bean 1896) in honor of Alexander Agassiz (1835-1910), Curator, Museum of Comparative Zoology (Harvard), and director of several deep-sea expeditions, “the leading spirit in American thalassographic research”
Monomitopus ainonaka Girard, Carter & Johnson 2023 in honor of Ai Nonaka, United States National Museum, for her interest in ophidiid larvae and dedication to the discovery, identification, and curation of larval fishes [presumably a noun in apposition, without the matronymic “ae”]
Monomitopus conjugator (Alcock 1896) one who unites, presumably referring to two ventral-fin rays, “intimately fused throughout” their length
Monomitopus garmani (Smith & Radcliffe 1913) in honor of Harvard ichthyologist-herpetologist Samuel Garman (1843-1927), for his noteworthy contributions to our knowledge of deep-sea fishes (he also proposed the genus, Monomeropus [=Monomitopus], in which this species was originally placed)
Monomitopus kumae Jordan & Hubbs 1925 in honor of fisherman Kumakichi Aoki (affectionately known as “Kuma”), who collected type
Monomitopus longiceps Smith & Radcliffe 1913 longus, long; ceps, head, referring to its “long, robust” head, 4.21 in TL
Monomitopus magnus Carter & Cohen 1985 large, reaching 535 mm SL, the largest species in the genus
Monomitopus malispinosus (Garman 1899) mala, cheek; spinosus, spiny, presumably referring to slender spine on opercular and two short, blunt preopercular spines
Monomitopus metriostoma (Vaillant 1888) metrio-, moderate or temperate; stoma, body, presumably referring to how posterior half of body is “sensibly attenuated” (translation), i.e., less anguilliform, than presumed congeners at the time
Monomitopus microlepis Smith & Radcliffe 1913 micro-, small; lepis, scale, referring to its smaller scales compared to M. nigripinnis
Monomitopus nigripinnis (Alcock 1889) nigri-, black; pinnis, fin, referring to its black fins
Monomitopus pallidus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 ashen, pale or wan, presumably referring to its lighter color compared to M. nigripinnis
Monomitopus torvus Garman 1899 wild, severe or grim, allusion not explained nor evident
Monomitopus vitiazi (Nielsen 1971) in honor of the Soviet research vessel Vitiaz (also spelled Vityaz), from which type was collected
Neobythites Goode & Bean 1885 neo-, new, a newly described genus then presumed to be allied to Bythites (Bythitidae)
Neobythites alcocki Nielsen 2002 in honor of physician-naturalist Alfred William Alcock (1859-1933), for his many contributions to the knowledge of the fishes of the Bay of Bengal
Neobythites analis Barnard 1927 pertaining to anal fin, which on this species has a “very characteristic” black margin
Neobythites andamanensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Andaman Sea, type locality
Neobythites australiensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: northwestern Australia, where it occurs
Neobythites bimaculatus Nielsen 1997 bi-, two; maculatus, spotted, referring to two ocelli on dorsal fin
Neobythites bimarginatus Fourmanoir & Rivaton 1979 bi-, two; marginatus, bordered, referring to distal and proximal parts of dorsal and anal fins light but with the middle part black, creating the appearance of a double edge or border
Neobythites braziliensis Nielsen 1999 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off the coast of Brazil, type locality
Neobythites crosnieri Nielsen 1995 in honor of carcinologist Alain Crosnier (1930-2021), Muséum national d’Histoire (Paris), who made an “excellent” collection of fishes from off Madagascar, including type of this species
Neobythites elongatus Nielsen & Retzer 1994 referring to the elongate form of its body
Neobythites fasciatus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 banded, referring to narrow, dark russet bands on body
Neobythites fijiensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Fiji, type locality
Neobythites franzi Nielsen 2002 in honor of Norwegian/South African ichthyologist Franz Uiblein, with whom Nielsen had “many fruitful discussions on Neobythites problems”
Neobythites gilli Goode & Bean 1885 in honor of Smithsonian zoologist Theodore Gill (1837-1914), the “Nestor [wise king] of American Ichthyology” (Goode & Bean 1896)
Neobythites gloriae Uiblein & Nielsen 2018 in honor of the first author’s wife, Gloria Jansen Echevarria
Neobythites japonicus Uiblein & Nielsen 2023 –icus, belonging to: Japan, west of Okinawa in the western Pacific, type locality
Neobythites javaensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off the coast of Java, type locality
Neobythites jonathan Uiblein & Nielsen 2023 in honor of Jonathan Pfliger, fish collection manager, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), for his “invaluable” assistance in the authors’ fish taxonomy research [a noun in apposition, without the patronymic “i”]
Neobythites kenyaensis Nielsen 1995 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off the coast of Kenya, type locality
Neobythites lombokensis Uiblein & Nielsen 2018 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off Lombok Island, Indonesia, Eastern Indian Ocean, type locality
Neobythites longipes Smith & Radcliffe 1913 longus, long; pes, foot, referring to its elongate ventral fins, their inner rays more than twice as long as head
Neobythites longispinis Nielsen 2002 longus, long; spinis, spine, referring to its long opercular and preopercular spines
Neobythites longiventralis Nielsen 1997 longus, long; ventralis, ventral, referring to long ventral-fin rays, reaching beyond origin of anal fin
Neobythites machidai Ohashi, Nielsen & Yabe 2012 in honor of Yoshihiko Machida, professor emeritus, Kochi University, for his contributions to the taxonomy of ophidiid fishes in Japan
Neobythites macrocelli Nielsen 2002 macro-, large; ocelli, eyespots, referring to two large ocelli on dorsal fin
Neobythites macrops Günther 1887 macro-, large; ops, eye, referring to its “rather large” eye
Neobythites malayanus Weber 1913 –anus, belonging to: Malaya, presumably referring to its type locality in the Lesser Sunda Islands in the Malay Archipelago
Neobythites malhaensis Nielsen 1995 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Saya de Malha Bank, north of Mauritius, type locality
Neobythites marginatus Goode & Bean 1886 edged, presumably referring to narrow white margin on dorsal fin
Neobythites marianaensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Mariana Islands, type locality
Neobythites marquesaensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Marquesas Islands, type locality
Neobythites meteori Nielsen 1995 in honor of the German research vessel Meteor, from which type was collected
Neobythites monocellatus Nielsen 1999 mono-, one; ocellatus, having little eyes, referring to single ocellus on dorsal fin
Neobythites multidigitatus Nielsen 1999 multi-, many; digitatus, fingered, referring to large number of pectoral-fin rays (32 vs. 23-30 in Atlantic congeners)
Neobythites multiocellatus Nielsen, Uiblein & Mincarone 2009 multi-, many; ocellatus, having little eyes, referring to high number of ocelli (>2) on dorsal fin
Neobythites multistriatus Nielsen & Quéro 1991 multi-, many; striatus, striped, referring to numerous transverse stripes on body
Neobythites musorstomi Nielsen 2002 in honor of the MUSORSTOM exploratory cruises to the Indo-West Pacific region jointly sponsored by the Institut français de Recherche Scientifique pour le Développement en Coopération (ORSTOM) and the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, which procured a “very rich” collection of fishes from the West Pacific, including type of this one
Neobythites natalensis Nielsen 1995 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off the coast of KwaZuku-Natal, South Africa, type locality
Neobythites neocaledoniensis Nielsen 1997 –ensis, suffix denoting place, New Caledonia, type locality
Neobythites nigriventris Nielsen 2002 nigri-, black; ventris, belly, referring to black-speckled abdomen
Neobythites ocellatus Günther 1887 having little eyes, i.e., spotted, referring to “large black white-edged ocellus anteriorly on the dorsal fin, a second larger one at some distance behind, a third is but slightly indicated”
Neobythites pako Uiblein & Nielsen 2023 in honor of Francisco “Pako” Uiblein, son of the first author [a noun in apposition, without the patronymic “i”]
Neobythites pallidus Nielsen 1997 pale, referring to uniformly pale, light-brown body coloration
Neobythites purus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 pure, presumably referring to unspotted dorsal fin (compared to N. macrops and N. unimaculatus)
Neobythites sereti Nielsen 2002 in honor of ichthyologist Bernard Séret (b. 1949), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), for making “valuable collections” available to Nielsen
Neobythites sinensis Nielsen 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Sinica (China), referring to type locality in the South China Sea
Neobythites sivicola (Jordan & Snyder 1901) sivi-, presumed latinization of Shiwo from Kuro Shiwo, Black Current; colo-, to inhabit, referring to occurrence in major Pacific Ocean current that washes the southeastern shores of Asia
Neobythites soelae Nielsen 2002 in honor of the CSIRO (Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) fisheries research vessel Soela, from which a major part of the Australian Neobythites material was caught
Neobythites solomonensis Uiblein & Nielsen 2021 –ensis, suffix denoting place: eastern Solomon Sea, southwest Pacific, only known area of occurrence
Neobythites somaliaensis Nielsen 1995 –ensis, suffix denoting place: off the coast of Somalia, type locality (also occurs off coast of Yemen)
Neobythites steatiticus Alcock 1894 –icus, belonging to: steatite (soapstone), “streaked like a fish cut in soapstone” (Alcock 1902)
Neobythites stefanovi Nielsen & Uiblein 1993 in honor of the Soviet research vessel Dmitry Stefanov, from which a major part of the type material was caught
Neobythites stelliferoides Gilbert 1890 –oides, having the form of: referring to its physiognomy “strikingly like that” of the drum or croaker genus Stelliferus (=Stellifer, Sciaenidae)
Neobythites stigmosus Machida 1984 marked, referring to many irregularly shaped dark spots and worm-like short bands on body, and/or dark spots on dorsal fin and distal half of anal fin
Neobythites superocellatus Uiblein & Nielsen 2023 super, over and above; ocellatus, having little eyes (ocelli), referring to large dorsal-fin ocellus
Neobythites trifilis Kotthaus 1979 tri-, three; filum, thread, referring to left ventral fin of holotype with three thread-like rays (right ventral fin of holotype and ventral fins of 69 additional specimens all have only two rays in each ventral fin)
Neobythites unicolor Nielsen & Retzer 1994 uni-, one, i.e., one-colored, referring to uniformly yellowish coloration and lack of color markings in alcohol (living and fresh specimens show a large number of distinctive, dark, rounded or irregularly shaped spots distributed on head, dorsal portion of body, and dorsal fin; this color pattern fades when fish are frozen, and it is completely lost during preservation over several years)
Neobythites unimaculatus Smith & Radcliffe 1913 uni-, one; maculatus, spotted, referring to single ocellus on dorsal fin (compared to 2-3 on N. macrops)
Neobythites vityazi Nielsen 1995 in honor of the Soviet research vessel Vityaz (also spelled Vitiaz), for significant contributions to marine biology with her many valuable collections, including type of this species
Neobythites zonatus Nielsen 1997 banded, referring to dark vertical bars on body
Neobythites zora Uiblein & Nielsen 2023 in honor of Zouhaira “Zora” Harakati Gabsi, fish collection manager, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), for her “invaluable” assistance in the authors’ fish taxonomy research [a noun in apposition, without the matronymic “ae”]
Neobythitoides Nielsen & Machida 2006 –oides, having the form of: referring to resemblance to Neobythites
Neobythitoides serratus Nielsen & Machida 2006 referring to serrated hind margin of preopercle
Penopus Goode & Bean 1896 pene, thread; opus, foot, referring to thread-like ventral fins of P. microphthalmus
Penopus japonicus Nielsen & Ohashi 2011 Japanese, referring to its type locality (Ryukyu Trench) in Japanese waters
Penopus microphthalmus (Vaillant 1888) micro-, small; opthalmus, eye, referring to its small eyes, almost hidden under the skin
Porogadus Goode & Bean 1885 poros, pore, referring to numerous pores on head of P. miles; gadus, cod, i.e., a “Gadus-like fish, with openings in its skin (Goode & Bean 1896)
Porogadus abyssalis Nybelin 1957 of the deep sea, collected at 5250-5300 m, the deepest occurrence of any congener then known
Porogadus atripectus Garman 1899 atri-, black; pectus, chest, referring to black chest (as are snout, lower portion of head, cheeks, belly, and linings of mouth and body cavity)
Porogadus caboverdensis Schwarzhans & Møller 2021 –ensis, suffix denoting place: deep water Cape Verde Basin (Cabo Verde in local Portuguese language), submarine depression in Atlantic Ocean, from where this species so far is exclusively recorded
Porogadus catena (Goode & Bean 1885) chain, referring to chain-like arrangement of mucous cavities on head
Porogadus dracocephalus Schwarzhans & Møller 2021 draconis, dragon; cephalus, head, referring to dragon-like shape of its head
Porogadus gracilis (Günther 1878) slender, presumably referring to compressed head, body and tail, the latter produced into a long filament
Porogadus guentheri Jordan & Fowler 1902 in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist Albert Günther (1830-1914), British Museum (Natural History)
Porogadus lacrimatus Schwarzhans & Møller 2021 wept or cried, referring to tear-drop shape of otolith
Porogadus longiceps Garman 1899 longus, long; ceps, head, 1/6 of total length, resembling the head of the pike (Esociformes: Esox)
Porogadus melanocephalus (Alcock 1891) melano-, black; cephalus, head, referring to its black head (also has a black belly)
Porogadus mendax Schwarzhans & Møller 2021 given to lying, but authors treat it as a noun meaning “liar, narrator,” referring to close similarity to the common P. miles, which, unlike P. mendax, does not seem to occur below 4000 m
Porogadus miles Goode & Bean 1885 soldier, but here meaning “warlike” (Goode & Bean 1896), presumably referring to numerous spines on interorbital space of head
Porogadus nudus Vaillant 1888 bare or naked, scales almost entirely absent, a few visible near branchial opening
Porogadus promelas Gilbert 1892 pro-, in front of; melas, black; referring to “jet-black” head (except occiput), mouth and gill cavity on an otherwise light-brown body
Porogadus solomonensis Schwarzhans & Møller 2021 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Solomon Sea, only known area of occurrence
Porogadus subarmatus Vaillant 1888 sub-, less than; armatus, armed with a weapon, referring to less-spinous head compared to P. nudus
Porogadus trichiurus (Alcock 1890) trichos, hair or ray; urus, tail, referring to “long lash-like” tail
Porogadus turgidus Schwarzhans & Møller 2021 inflated, referring to large otolith size compared with its small sulcus size
Pycnocraspedum Alcock 1889 pycnos, thick and craspedum, edge or border, allusion not explained nor evident; alternate etymology: pycnos, thick; crassus, also meaning thick; pedus, foot, referring to ventral fins of P. squamipinne covered with thick scaly skin
Pycnocraspedum armatum Gosline 1954 armed, referring to spines on preopercular border
Pycnocraspedum fulvum Machida 1984 brown, referring to its brownish-yellow body color in alcohol
Pycnocraspedum microlepis (Matsubara 1943) micro-, small; lepis, scale, described as having ~122 in a longitudinal series
Pycnocraspedum phyllosoma (Parr 1933) phyllon, leaf; soma, body, referring to its “leaf-like appearance accentuated by the rather wide, entirely confluent vertical fins”
Pycnocraspedum squamipinne Alcock 1889 squama, scale; pinna, fin, referring to ventral fins covered with thick scaly skin
Selachophidium Gilchrist 1903 selachos, shark, allusion not explained nor evident; Ophidium, alternate and incorrect spelling of Ophidion, type genus of family
Selachophidium americanum Nielsen 1971 American, referring to its distribution on the Continental Slope of eastern South America compared with that of S. guentheri (Africa) and Monomitopus vitiazi (Australia), its presumed congener at the time
Selachophidium guentheri Gilchrist 1903 patronym not identified but almost certainly in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist Albert Günther (1830-1914)
Sirembo Bleeker 1857 indigenous name of S. imberbis in Japan
Sirembo amaculata (Cohen & Nielsen 1982) a-, not; maculata, spotted, referring to its lack of spots compared to Spottobrotula mahodadi, its presumed congener at the time
Sirembo imberbis (Temminck & Schlegel 1846) beardless, referring to absence of barbels on snout (compared to Brotula multibarbata, its presumed congener, also from Japan)
Sirembo jerdoni (Day 1888) in honor of physician-naturalist Thomas Caverhill Jerdon (1811-1872), whose illustration of this fish (instead of an actual specimen) served as the basis for its description
Sirembo metachroma Cohen & Robins 1986 meta, change; chroma, color, referring to the apparent ontogenetic change in its color pattern
Sirembo wami Nielsen, Schwarzhans & Uiblein 2014 in honor of WAM, Western Australian Museum, where holotype is curated
Spectrunculus Jordan & Thompson 1914 etymology not explained, probably diminutive of spectrum, ghost, referring to translucent, flesh-colored body of S. radcliffei
Spectrunculus crassus (Vaillant 1888) thick or fat, referring to thick head and/or inflated snout
Spectrunculus grandis (Günther 1877) large, presumably referring to its size, described at 74.93 cm TL
Spectrunculus radcliffei Jordan & Thompson 1914 in honor of ichthyologist-malacologist Lewis Radcliffe (1880–1950), scientific assistant of the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries, for his work on the Brotulidae (now Brotulinae), which at the time included this genus
Spectrunculus stenostio Uiblein, Møller & Nielsen 2023 stenos, narrow; ostio, ablative of ostium, an otolith structure, referring to its narrower ostium when related to its length or to sulcus length compared with S. grandis
Spottobrotula Cohen & Nielsen 1978 spotto, from spotte, Middle English antecedent to spot, referring to dark spots on dorsal part of body and dorsal fin of S. mahodadi, i.e., a spotted brotula
Spottobrotula mahodadi Cohen & Nielsen 1978 ancient Indian name for the Bay of Bengal, referring to type locality in the Andaman Islands
Spottobrotula mossambica Nielsen, Schwarzhans & Uiblein 2014 –ica, belonging to: Mozambique Channel, type locality
Spottobrotula persica Nielsen, Schwarzhans & Uiblein 2014 –ica, belonging to: Persia (ancient name of Iran), specifically, the Gulf of Iran, type locality
Tenuicephalichthys Schwarzhans & Møller 2024 tenuis, thin or weak, and cephalus, head, referring to “delicate and weak nature of the head ossification which results in often damaged specimens recovered from deep-water trawls”; ichthys, fish [replacement name for Tenuicephalus Schwarzhans & Møller 2021, preoccupied in fossil spiders]
Tenuicephalichthys melampeplus (Alcock 1896) melano-, black; peplus, robe or tunic, presumably referring to its uniform purple-black color
Tenuicephalichthys multitrabs (Schwarzhans & Møller 2021) multi-, many; trabs, club or spar, having more long gill rakers (17-21) than T. melampeplus (14-16)
Tenuicephalichthys silus (Carter & Sulak 1984) pugnose, referring to depressed snout projecting slightly over mouth
Tenuicephalichthys squamilabrus (Schwarzhans & Møller 2021) squamis, scale; labrum, lip, referring to many small scales on maxilla and supramaxilla
Thalassobathia Cohen 1963 –ia, belong to: thalassina, of the sea; bathys, deep, referring to its bathypelagic habitat
Thalassobathia nelsoni Lee 1974 in honor of Lee’s father, Nelson B. Lee
Thalassobathia pelagica Cohen 1963 referring to its bathypelagic habitat
Typhlonus Günther 1878 typhlos, blind, referring to its eyes, “reduced to a minute rudiment hidden below the skin”; onus, presumably a latinization of onos, a name dating to Aristotle, originally referring to Phycis blennoides (Gadidae) but often mistakenly applied to Merluccius merluccius (Merlucciidae) and hence used several times by Günther as a suffix for a hake-like fish
Typhlonus nasus Günther 1878 nose, referring to thick protuberance on snout, projecting beyond mouth
Ventichthys Nielsen, Møller & Segonzac 2006 vent, referring to its capture at the hydrothermal vent site Oasis, South East Pacific Rise, at 2586 m; ichthys, fish
Ventichthys biospeedoi Nielsen, Møller & Segonzac 2006 in honor of the French Biospeedo expedition to the South East Pacific Rise, which launched submersible that collected type