eelpout Lycodichthys dearborni

Lycodichthys dearborni has been collected in the Ross Sea at depths from 466 to 600 meters [1,3,4,5]. L. dearborni has been collected at lengths up to 23 centimeters [1,3,4].

Body color of Lycodichthys dearborni is light or yellowish with brown mottling; largest specimens are mostly uniform dark brown with the head and nape darker [3,4]. Body color of L. dearborni has also been described as brownish to pale yellowish brown with a dark back and lighter sides with a small light fleck under each dark scale [1].

Pectoral fins of L. dearborni are yellowish with light brown mottling when young, which fades in larger specimens [3,4]. Smaller specimens have a dark brown dorsal surface of head, body, and tail which breaks up into blotches on cheeks, abdomen, and tail [4].

The eelpout family (Zoarcidae) of fishes are usually benthic slope dwellers and are found around the world; benthic forms are usually sexually dimorphic [2]. Benthic eelpouts like Lycodichthys dearborni feed on polychaetes, bivalves, and gastropods [3]. The species name dearborni honors John Dearborn who collected the first specimens.

1: History and Atlas of the Fishes of the Antarctic Ocean. RG Miller. Carson City, Nevada : Foresta Institute for Ocean and Mountain Studies, 1993. pp. 652-653; 2: FAO Species Identification Sheets for Fishery Purposes : Southern Ocean (Fishing Areas 48, 58 and 88) (CCAMLR Convention Area) / W Fischer & JC Hureau, eds. Rome : Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 1985; 3: Fishes of the Southern Ocean. O Gon and PC Heemstra, eds. Grahamstown, South Africa : JLB Smith Institute of Ichthyology, 1990. pp. 268-269; 4: Biology of the Antarctic Seas 19:59-113, 1988. Antarctic Research Series Volume 47; 5: Antarctic Science 11(3):293-304, 1999

Text ©Peter Brueggeman. Photographs ©Steve Alexander & Paul Cziko. Photograph may not be used in any form without the express written permission of Steve Alexander & Paul Cziko.