Abstract

A new species of eelpout, Lycodes akuugun, is described from the Aleutian Islands on the basis of 11 specimens collected during bottom-trawl surveys from 1994 through 2004. This species has a distinctive color pattern, characterized by a dark brown dorsum separated from a light gray ventrum by a distinct border running along the lateral surface of the head and most of the body, as well as several distinct narrow bars on the dorsal fin and a light blotch on the posterodorsal portion of the caudal fin. It is also characterized by having an elongate body, a ventrally placed lateral line, rounded pectoral fins, and relatively high meristics, as well as the presence of an interorbital cephalic sensory pore and the absence of scales on the nape. Among sympatric congeners, L. akuugun is most similar to L. diapterus, L. brevipes, and L. concolor. It differs from all three species in color pattern and in the presence of an interorbital cephalic sensory pore. It can be distinguished from other congeners on the basis of coloration, lateral-line morphology, and meristics.