Updated 19 Feb. 2025
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Subfamily STERNOPTYCHINAE Duméril 1805
Argyropelecus Cocco 1829 árgyros (Gr. ἄργυρος), white metal (i.e., silver); pélekus (Gr. πέλεκυς), battle axe, referring to silvery pigment and hatchet-shaped body of A. hemigymnus
Argyropelecus aculeatus Valenciennes 1850 Latin for sharp-pointed, referring to double row of spines along lower side of tail
Argyropelecus affinis Garman 1899 Latin for related, presumably referring to its similarity to, and previous misidentification as, A. hemigymnus
Argyropelecus gigas Norman 1930 gígas (Gr. γίγας), giant, the largest marine hatchetfish, described at 87 mm SL (but reaching 110 mm)
Argyropelecus hemigymnus Cocco 1829 hemi-, from hḗmisys (Gr. ἥμισυς), half; gymnus, from gymnós (Gr. γυμνός), bare or naked, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to phosphorescent spots that run along lower portion of body, which might create the impression that half of the otherwise scaleless body is scaled
Argyropelecus lychnus Garman 1899 Latin for a light or lamp (hung from a ceiling), referring to luminous organs, which Garman called “lanterns,” on head and body (a feature of the genus) [often misspelled as lynchus]
Argyropelecus olfersii (Cuvier 1829) in honor of German naturalist and diplomat Ignaz von Olfers (1793–1871), who discovered this species in the vicinity of the Azores
Argyropelecus sladeni Regan 1908 in honor of British echinoderm biologist Percy Sladen (1849–1900) and the Percy Sladen Memorial Trust, which funded Indian Ocean expedition that collected type
Polyipnus Günther 1887 polý (Gr. πολύ), many; ipnós (Gr. ἰπνός), lantern, referring to luminous organs of P. spinosus, which have reached “an extraordinary degree of development as regards size and number”
Polyipnus aquavitus Baird 1971 Latinization of akavit, the Danish national drink, allusion not explained but possibly an indirect allusion to the research vessel Galathea, also Danish
Polyipnus asper Harold 1994 Latin for rough, referring to presence of denticles in the ACB (above anal fin) photophore scales
Polyipnus asteroides Schultz 1938 -oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape: aster, star, referring to its star-like photophores
Polyipnus bruuni Harold 1994 in honor of the research vessel Anton Bruun (named for the Danish marine biologist, 1901–1961), which collected holotype during the International Indian Ocean Expeditions
Polyipnus clarus Harold 1994 Latin for bright or distinct, referring to its very light pigmentation compared to P. asteroides, with which it has been confused
Polyipnus danae Harold 1990 named to acknowledge the contributions of the Carlsberg Foundation Dana Expeditions (1928–1930) to deep-sea ichthyology; the Dana also collected holotype
Polyipnus elongatus Borodulina 1979 Latin for prolonged, referring to its elongate body shape
Polyipnus fraseri Fowler 1934 in honor of marine biologist Charles McLean Fraser (1872–1946), University of British Columbia (Canada), “with pleasant memories of the Fourth Pacific Congress in Java 1929”
Polyipnus indicus Schultz 1961 -icus (L.), belonging to: Western Indian Ocean, where it occurs
Polyipnus inermis Borodulina 1981 Latin for unarmed, referring to its smooth photophore scales, i.e., without denticles
Polyipnus kiwiensis Baird 1971 -ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Kiwi, a common self-reference of residents of New Zealand, where this species is known from Red Mercury Island off the northeastern coast of North Island
Polyipnus laruei Vourey, Dupoux & Harold 2017 in honor of fisherman William Larue, who collected and photographed holotype (found dead, floating on the surface)
Polyipnus laternatus Garman 1899 -atus (L.), provided with: laterna (L.), lantern, lamp or torch (i.e., luminous organs), “very well developed in both disks and reflectors”
Polyipnus latirastrus Last & Harold 1994 latus (L.), side or flank; rastrus, from rastrum (L.), comb or rake, referring to exceptionally long spine-like denticles on scales covering lateral surfaces of many photophores
Polyipnus limatulus Harold & Wessel 1998 diminutive of limatus (L.), filed, polished or smoothed, referring to characteristic lack of denticles on scales covering ACB (above anal fin) photophores
Polyipnus matsubarai Schultz 1961 in honor of “esteemed colleague” Kiyomatsu Matsubara (1907–1968), ichthyologist, Imperial Fisheries Institute (Tokyo), who loaned specimens for study (and translated Japanese papers for Schultz)
Polyipnus meteori Kotthaus 1967 in honor of the German research vessel Meteor, which collected holotype
Polyipnus notatus Harold, Kemp & Shore 2016 Latin for marked, referring to “distinctive” shape of lateral pigment bar, narrow and triangular
Polyipnus nuttingi Gilbert 1905 in honor of American zoologist Charles Cleveland Nutting (1858–1927), member of the Albatross Hawaiian expedition in 1902, during which holotype was collected
Polyipnus oluolus Baird 1971 Latinization of oluolo, Hawaiian for happy, allusion not explained nor evident
Polyipnus omphus Baird 1971 Marathi word that roughly translates as “unwanted,” allusion not explained, perhaps alluding to its extremely disjunct distribution: a few specimens north of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean and one specimen from the Central Pacific north of the Marquesas Islands
Polyipnus ovatus Harold 1994 Latin for egg-shaped (i.e., oval), referring to its general body shape
Polyipnus parini Borodulina 1979 in honor of ichthyologist Nikolai Vasil’evich Parin (1932–2012), Russian Academy of Sciences
Polyipnus paxtoni Harold 1989 in honor of American-born Australian ichthyologist John R. Paxton (1938–2023), Australian Museum (Sydney), for his contributions to the study of oceanic fishes, and for providing collections of this species
Polyipnus polli Schultz 1961 in honor of “esteemed colleague” Max Poll (1908–1991), Belgian ichthyologist, who loaned specimens to Schultz
Polyipnus ruggeri Baird 1971 of rugger, a slang word for rugby football, in honor of New Zealand’s national sport, referring to this species’ only known area of occurrences off Wellington, New Zealand, and west of the Kermadec Islands
Polyipnus soelae Harold 1994 of the Australian fishing vessel Soela, which collected many specimens of this species
Polyipnus spinifer Borodulina 1979 spinus (L.), thorn; –ifer, from fera (L.), to have or bear, referring to spinulose scales of anal photophores
Polyipnus spinosus Günther 1887 Latin for thorny, referring to pair of horizontal spines, pointing backwards, on the occiput
Polyipnus stereope Jordan & Starks 1904 stereós (Gr. στερεός), solid, hard or three-dimensional; opé (Gr. ὀπή), opening or hole, hole or cavity, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to large cavity in skull above and behind eye (not mentioned in text but clearly seen in illustration)
Polyipnus surugaensis Aizawa 1990 -ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Suruga Bay, Japan, only known area of occurrence
Polyipnus tridentifer McCulloch 1914 tri– (L.), three, and dentatus (L.), toothed; –ifer, from fera (L.), to have or bear, referring to three very large spines on each side of the post-temporals
Polyipnus triphanos Schultz 1938 tri– (L.), three; phanós (Gr. φανός), light or torch, referring to characteristic position of the three supra-abdominal photophores (last or third organ above middle organ by a distance equal to its width; first organ extends above second organ a distance equal to 1.5–2.0 times its width)
Polyipnus unispinus Schultz 1938 uni-, from unus (L.), one; spinus (L.) spine, referring to its single post-temporal spine
Sternoptyx Hermann 1781 stérnon (Gr. στέρνον), breast or chest (especially of men); ptýx (πτύξ), layer or fold, referring to fold of transparent skin on breast of S. diaphana
Sternoptyx diaphana Hermann 1781 from diaphanḗs (Gr. διαφανής), translucent or transparent, referring to pellucid fold of skin on breast
Sternoptyx obscura Garman 1899 Latin for dark, presumably referring to upper half of body “clouded brown or blackish”
Sternoptyx pseudobscura Baird 1971 pseudo-, from pseúdēs (Gr. ψεύδης), false, i.e., although it may closely resemble S. obscura, such an appearance is false
Sternoptyx pseudodiaphana Borodulina 1977 pseudo-, from pseúdēs (Gr. ψεύδης), false, referring to its close relationship to S. diaphana
Subfamily MAUROLICINAE Gill 1885
Araiophos Grey 1961 araiós (Gr. ἀραιός), thin, slender or weak (Grey says “few”); phṓs (Gr. φῶς), light, referring to reduced number of photophores compared with other maurolicine genera
Araiophos eastropas Ahlstrom & Moser 1969 derived from name of expedition, EASTROPAC (Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean Survey Cruise), during which type material was collected
Araiophos gracilis Grey 1961 Latin for thin or slender, referring to its “elongate, slender” body
Argyripnus Gilbert & Cramer 1897 árgyros (Gr. ἄργυρος), white metal (i.e., silver), presumably referring to primary body coloration in life of A. ephippiatus; ipnós (Gr. ἰπνός), lantern, referring to numerous photophores on body
Argyripnus atlanticus Maul 1952 -icus (L.), belonging to: Atlantic Ocean, referring to type locality at Funchal Harbor, Madeira, in the eastern Atlantic
Argyripnus boreopacificus Prokofiev 2017 -icus (L.), belonging to: borealis (L.), northern, referring to its distribution in the northwestern Pacific Ocean (also, most northern record of this genus in the Pacific)
Argyripnus brocki Struhsaker 1973 in honor of the late Vernon E. Brock (1912–1971), American biologist, for his contributions to marine biology and his encouragement and support of Struhsaker’s studies of Hawaiian bathyal fishes
Argyripnus electronus Parin 1992 élektron (Gr. ἤλεκτρον), amber, referring to unofficial name used by Russian fishermen at seamount where it was collected, gora Yantarnaya (Amber seamount); also describes its general coloration, “reminiscent of light and semitransparent Baltic amber”
Argyripnus ephippiatus Gilbert & Cramer 1897 Latin for saddled, referring to black saddle-shaped markings behind head
Argyripnus hulleyi Quéro, Spitz & Vayne 2009 in honor of Percy (misstated as Paul) Alexander Hulley (b. 1941), Curator of Fishes, Iziko South African Museum, for assistance to the authors
Argyripnus iridescens McCulloch 1926 Neo-Latin for iridescent or rainbow-like, referring to iridescent colors on otherwise black occiput and portions of opercles, throat and chest
Argyripnus pharos Harold & Lancaster 2003 from Pháros (Gr. Φάρος), the lighthouse of Alexandria (but here meaning lighthouse in general), referring to dorsally displaced elements of VAV (ventral, pelvic-fin to anal-fin base) + ACA (above anal photophores) photophore cluster
Argyripnus scharpfi Prokofiev 2023 in honor of Christopher Scharpf (b. 1961), author of The ETYFish Project
Danaphos Bruun 1931 Dana, Danish fishery research vessel that collected holotype of D. ateroscopus; phṓs (Gr. φῶς), light, referring to its “large and conspicuous” photophores
Danaphos asteroscopus Bruun 1931 astḗr (Gr. ἀστήρ), star; skopós (Gr. σκοπός), looker, contemplator or viewer, referring to its telescopic (turned upward) eyes
Danaphos oculatus (Garman 1899) Latin for eyed, allusion not explained, probably referring to its large eyes, “nearly two fifths of the length of the head”
Maurolicus Cocco 1838 etymology not explained, presumably a Latinization of Maurolico, honoring Italian mathematician-astronomer Francesco Maurolico (1494–1575), who taught and died in Messina, where holotype of M. amethystinopunctatus originated
Maurolicus amethystinopunctatus Cocco 1838 amethystino, masculine singular of amethystinus (L.), amethyst; punctatus (L.), spotted, presumably referring to small photophores imbedded in skin of body, tail and lower sides of head
Maurolicus australis Hector 1875 Latin for southern, dubbed the “Southern Pearlside” by Hector, referring to New Zealand, type locality
Maurolicus breviculus Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 Latin for somewhat short, referring to small size compared to congeners
Maurolicus imperatorius Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 –ius (L.), pertaining to: Emperor submarine ridge, Central North Pacific, type locality
Maurolicus inventionis Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 -is, genitive singular of: inventio (L.), invention or discovery, referring to Discovery Seamount (named for the research vessel Discovery), southeast Atlantic, type locality
Maurolicus japonicus Ishikawa 1915 -icus (L.), belonging to: Japan, referring to its occurrence in the Japan Sea and Pacific coast of Japan
Maurolicus javanicus Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 -icus (L.), belonging to: Java, referring to type locality off the coast of Java in the Eastern Indian Ocean
Maurolicus kornilovorum Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 -orum (L.), commemorative suffix, plural: in honor of fisheries scientists Nikolay Pavlovich Kornilov and his wife Galina Nikolayevna Kornilova, for their help receiving samples, organizing research expeditions, and sharing data on the ecology and distribution of deep-sea fishes
Maurolicus mucronatus Klunzinger 1871 Latin for pointed, referring to slightly protruding lower jaw, which forms a small tip (Klunzinger said name refers to its “small chin” [translation], presumably the same feature)
Maurolicus muelleri (Gmelin 1789) in honor of Danish naturalist Otto Friedrich Müller (1730–1784), who briefly described this species in his Zoologiae Danicae Prodromus (1766) but did not provide a Linnaean name
Maurolicus parvipinnis Vaillant 1888 parvus (L.), small; pinnis, Neo-Latin adjective of pinna (L.), fin, i.e., finned, presumably referring to smaller number of dorsal- and anal-fin rays compared with M. amethystinopunctatus
Maurolicus rudjakovi Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 in honor of Yuri Alexandrovich Rudjakov (b. 1938), researcher of suprabenthic plankton and participant of cruises to Nazca and Sala y Gomez ridges, Eastern South Pacific, where this species occurs
Maurolicus stehmanni Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 in honor of German ichthylogist Matthias Stehmann (b. 1943), Institut für Seefischerei (Hamburg), who participated with the authors in a number of expeditions and helped to collect holotype
Maurolicus walvisensis Parin & Kobyliansky 1993 -ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Port of Walvis Bay, Namibia, where it is common
Maurolicus weitzmani Parin & Kobyliansky 199 3in honor of American ichthyologist Stanley H. Weitzman (1927–2017), National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution (Washington, D.C.), for his 1974 monograph on sternoptychid osteology and phylogeny
Sonoda Grey 1959 named for Pearl Sonoda (1918–2015), then Assistant in the Division of Fishes, Chicago Natural History Museum, where Grey worked
Sonoda megalophthalma Grey 1959 big-eyed, from mégas (Gr. μέγας), big, and ophthalmós (Gr. ὀφθαλμός), eye referring to its “very large” eyes
Sonoda paucilampa Grey 1960 paucus (L.), scanty or few; lampás (Gr. λαμπάς), lamp, referring to “greatly reduced number” of AC (anal-fin base to caudal-fin base) photophores compared to S. megalophthalma
Thorophos Bruun 1931 Thor, the first Danish research ship specially equipped for scientific work on the oceans; phṓs (Gr. φῶς), light, referring to “large and conspicuous” photophores of T. euryops
Thorophos euryops Bruun 1931 eurýs (Gr. εὐρύς), wide or broad; ṓps (Gr. ὦψ), eye, referring to its large eyes
Thorophos nexilis (Myers 1932) Latin for tied up or interwoven, presumably referring to photophores on trunk, which are arranged in a “close set row with a few breaks”
Valenciennellus Jordan & Evermann 1896 -ella (L.) diminutive connoting endearment: in honor of French zoologist Achille Valenciennes (1794–1865), author of most of Histoire Naturelle des Poissons (1828–1850), “a noble work which is the foundation of modern ichthyology”
Valenciennellus carlsbergi Bruun 1931 in honor of the Carlsberg Foundation, which financed the Dana fishery research cruise during which holotype was collected
Valenciennellus tripunctulatus (Esmark 1871) tri– (L.), three; punctulatus, diminutive of punctum (L.), spot, i.e., having tiny spots, referring to luminous organs above anal-fin base, each with three silver little spots