Parasaccogaster melanomycter (Cohen, 1981)

Family:  Bythitidae (Livebearing brotulas)
Max. size:  6.6 cm SL (female)
Environment:  reef-associated; marine; depth range - 8 m
Distribution:  Western Central Atlantic: near Santa Marta, Colombia.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal soft rays (total): 74-74; Anal soft rays: 37-37; Vertebrae: 45-45. This species is distinguished from its congeners by the following characters: sooty black nasal chambers; few anal fin rays (37 vs. 49-54), few vertebrae (45 vs. 54-58), a wider head (12.0 % SL vs. 7.7-9.8 % SL); a pair of sub-dermal spines fused to form a broad ridge on frontal just behind eyes, a small, median, sub-dermal, ethmoidal spine just in front of eyes and an antero-ventrally directed spine at lower angle of preopercle (all spines covered by skin); anterior gill arch with 3 developed rakers, only slightly larger than the spiny knobs, gill filaments 7-8 times length of developed rakers; slightly prolonged pectoral peduncle; palatines with several tooth rows; vertebrae, precaudal 16 and total 45; fin rays, D 74, A 37, caudal 10 and pectoral 18 (Ref. 93007).
Biology:  Rare species, known from a single specimen (Ref. 34024), apparently living on a shallow reef (Ref. 93007).
IUCN Red List Status: Data deficient (DD); Date assessed: 29 January 2013 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


Source and more info: www.fishbase.org. For personal, classroom, and other internal use only. Not for publication.