First record of deep-water barbeled dragonfish from Indian waters

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Teleostei Müller, 1845

Order: Stomiiformes Rosen, 1973

Family: Stomiidae Bleeker, 1859

Borostomias elucens (Brauer, 1906)

Collection: Indian Ocean, northwest of Chagos Archipelago, 5.44°S, 65.96°E, 400 m, 16.09.2015 (FORVSS 344I, St. 11), Cosmos trawl; Indian Ocean, northwest of Chagos Archipelago, 3.88°S, 66.46°E, 400 m, 15.09.2015 (FORVSS 344I, St. 10), Cosmos trawl; Indian Ocean, southeast of Seychelles, 7.75°S, 59.18°E, 300 m, 07.10.2015 (FORVSS 344II, St. 04), Cosmos trawl; NE Arabian Sea, northwest of Malvan, Maharashtra, 16.26°N, 73.26°E, 1078 m, 15.10.2010 (FORVSS 281, St. 03), HSDT(CV).

Voucher No.: CMLRE IO/SS/FIS/00531, IO/SS/FIS/00532, IO/SS/FIS/00533, IO/SS/FIS/00711

Description: Dorsal soft rays: 15; Anal soft rays: 16–17. Body black, moderately slender and elongate. Serial photophores not broken in small groups. Teeth on maxilla 7; postorbital single. AC greatly arched behind the anal fin base. Stem of barbel black, distal end forming a small, spherical white bulb lacking filaments.

Biological association: None.

Remarks: First distributional record from Indian waters.

Distribution: Circumglobal. Depth range: 500–2500 m.

Distribution map:

Identified by: Rajeev R.

Publication: Rajeev R., Rajeeshkumar M.P., Cubelio S.S., Saravanane N. (2023) An updated checklist of Stomiiformes from Indian waters with nine new records. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 102: e95.

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