New Species of Eustomias (Teleostei: Stomiidae) from the Western North Atlantic, with a Review of the Subgenus Neostomias
A new species of the deep-sea dragonfish genus Eustomias is described from 14 specimens from the western North Atlantic. This species belongs to the subgenus Neostomias, which is defined principally by the presence of a single pectoral ray, plus one small rudimentary ray. It is unique among members of the subgenus in having a combination of characters that includes a short mental barbel, multiple proximal bulbs on the barbel main stem, and a unique terminal bulb morphology. Analysis of similar species warrants resurrection of Eustomias monodactylus, previously placed in synonymy with Eustomias filifer. A revised key to the species of the subgenus Neostomias is provided.Abstract
Barbels of species of Eustomias (Neostomias). (A) Eustomias jimcraddocki; (B) Eustomias tetranema; (C—E) Eustomias filifer; (F) Eustomias monodactylus. A, drawn by T. Sutton, B–F, after Regan and Trewavas (1930)
(A) Eustomias jimcraddocki, n. sp., holotype, MCZ 162290, 142 mm SL. (B) Close-up of the distal half of the barbel of Eustomias jimcraddocki
(A) Eustomias monodactylus, MCZ 53246, 92 mm SL. (B) Eustomias filifer, MCZ 96144, 90 mm SL
Contributor Notes
(TS) Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, Division of Marine Science, 1500 US 1 N, Fort Pierce, Florida 34946; and (KEH) Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusets 02138. (TS)tsutton@hboi.edu Send reprint requests to TS.