Spectrunculus

Uiblein, Franz, Møller, Peter R. & Nielsen, Jørgen G., 2023, The Systematics of the Ophidiid Genus Spectrunculus (Teleostei, Ophidiiformes) Revisited with Description of a New Species and Resurrection of S. radcliffei, Ichthyology & Herpetology 111 (3), pp. 467-485 : 468

Spectrunculus Jordan and Thompson, 1914

Giant Cuskeel

Spectrunculus Jordan and Thompson, 1914: 301 (type species by monotypy S. radcliffei Jordan and Thompson, 1914).

Parabassogigas Nybelin, 1957: 298 (type species by original designation Sirembo grandis G unther €, 1877).

Diagnosis.— The genus Spectrunculus differs from all other ophidiid genera in the combination of the following characters: dorsal-fin rays 121–148; anal-fin rays 91–112; total vertebrae 72–88; pectoral-fin rays 24–31; head short, 4.2 to 5.9 times in SL and 1.75 to 2.89 times in preanal distance; head robust with rounded snout and with several pores above and below eyes, mouth subterminal, upper jaw extending well behind eye. Teeth minute, blunt and robust, vomer roughly triangular or rhombic shaped. Anterior nostril with a thick, fleshy raised rim, posterior nostril larger, a mere hole or slit close to eye. Opercular spine strong. Head and body completely covered by small oval scales. Eyes shorter than snout, 5.5 or more times in HL; long rakers on anterior gill arch 7–10; two median basibranchial tooth patches; pelvic fins placed below preopercle; otolith ostium and sulcus well developed; color of head and body uniformly pale creamy or whitish, light or dark brown (rarely pale with dark speckles or rings); unpaired fins often dark when fresh or recently collected; dark pigmentation may not be retained with longer-term preservation.

Remarks.— Four valid species with maximum sizes of 60 to 130 cm SL (¼ ca. 65 to 140 cm TL) distributed in various parts of the major oceans (for details see species accounts below). Larger juveniles, subadults, and adults occur at or close to deep bathyal and abyssal bottoms (depth range ca. 1000 to at least 4255 m), mostly caught by bottom longlining or trawling or photographed in baited landers; larvae and small juveniles are pelagic ( Ambrose, 1996). Considering their large size and relatively common occurrence in distinct areas, species of Spectrunculus may play an important ecological role in deep-sea ecosystems ( Uiblein et al., 2008). No reported commercial value.