Table Of ContentPROC. BIOL. SOC. WASH.
104(2), 1991, pp. 328-334
PARMOPS CORUSCANS, A NEW GENUS AND SPECIES OF
FLASHLIGHT FISH (BERYCIFORMES: ANOMALOPIDAE)
FROM THE SOUTH PACIFIC
Richard H. Rosenblatt and G. David Johnson
Abstract.—Parmops coruscans, new genus, new species, is described from a
m
single specimen taken in 350 at Tahiti. It is distinguished from otheranom-
alopids by having the first four infraorbital bones expanded laterally to form
a shelfbeneath the eye. The light organ ofP. coruscans is rotatable, and there
isan erectile shutter. The shuttermechanism in Parmopsistheleastdeveloped
ofall anomalopids.
The family Anomalopidae is a small cir- specimenindicatesthatitrepresentsaclade
cumtropical group ofnocturnal neritic be- between Anomalops and Phthanophaneron
ryciform fishes. The most conspicuous de- within the phylogeny proposed by Johnson
finingcharacterofthegroup is the presence &Rosenblatt(1988, fig. 10),andthusshould
ofaluminousorganbeneaththeeyeinwhich be placed in a new genus.
symbiotic luminous bacteria are cultured Whether the new species is restricted to
(Harvey 1922). The bacteria glow contin- deep water or, like Kryptophanaron alfredi
uously, and the light organ is occluded me- SindAnomalopskatoptron, hasabroaddepth
chanically,eitherbyrotationofitsluminous distribution, remains to be determined,
facedownward orbythe erection ofablack along with all other aspects ofits biology.
elastic membrane upward over it (Johnson The purpose ofthis paper is to describe the
& Rosenblatt 1988). new species and discuss its relationships
The family was reviewed recently by withintheAnomalopidae. Methodsandter-
McCosker & Rosenblatt (1987), who rec- minology are those ofRosenblatt & Mont-
ognized five species in three genera and el- gomery (1976) and Johnson & Rosenblatt
evated the subspecies Photoblepharon pal- (1988)forexternalandlightorganocclusion
pebratum steinitzi to specific rank. Those morphology, respectively.
authors noted the presence oftwo forms in
the Indo-Australian area, P. palpebratum Parmops, new genus
and Anomalops katoptron. Subsequently, Figs. 1-3, Tables 1, 2
Johnson & Rosenblatt (1988) described the Diagnosis. —An anomalopid with the
mechanisms of light organ occlusion, dis- dorsolateral margins ofthe first four infra-
cussed the evolution ofthese mechanisms orbital bones expanded to form a medially
in light ofan hypothesized generic phylog- sloping shelf that protrudes laterally well
eny,anderectedanewgenus,Phthanophan- beyondtheperimeteroftheorbit, aspinous
eron, fortheeasternPacificKryptophanaron dorsal fin, two anal-fin spines, a pelvic-fin
harveyi. spine, a row ofenlarged scutes on the belly,
ThefishcollectionoftheBemiceP. Bish- a fully rotatable light organ and an elastic
op Museum (BPBM) contains a single shutterthat lies flat on the floorofthe orbit
anomalopid specimencollectedindeepwa- when relaxed.
ter at Tahiti that cannot be assigned to any Type species.—Parmops coruscans, new
known species. Our examination of that species.
VOLUME 104, NUMBER 2 329
Etymology.—From the Greek parme, a illae with uniformly small teeth, dentaries
small shield, and ops, eye, in reference to with anterior patches ofenlarged teeth that
the expanded infraorbitals. Gender mas- extend outside mouth. Vomer toothless,
culine. palatines with bands of teeth similar to
smallerjaw teeth.
Bonesofheadandshouldergirdle strong-
Parmops coruscans, new species
ly sculptured, with numerous spine-bearing
Figs. 1, 2, Tables 1, 2 ridges. Cleithrum broadly exposed, dorsal
Holotype.-BPBM 30885. A48.2 mmSL expansion with serrate posterior margin.
immature individual taken 11 Aug 1985 Supracleithrum exposed, its posterior mar-
outsidethereefatPunnauia, Tahiti, Society ginweaklydenticulate. Infraorbitals 1-4en-
Islands, from the stomach ofagrouper, Sa- larged and laterally flared to form medially
m
loptia powelli, caught at 350 by "Fuller sloping shelfeffectively deepening subocu-
and Faty." lar pocket that accommodates light organ.
Description. —Counts and measure- Laterosensory canals ofhead developed as
ments, in mm, ofthe holotype: Dorsal-fin broad troughs with bony bridges. Lacrimal
V—
rays 1,16; anal-finraysII,12; pectoral-fin with three pores anteriorly followed by two
raysiil4i; pelvic-finrays1,5; caudal-finrays larger cavities covered with smooth black
10, 10+9, 10; branchiostegals 8; gill rakers membrane without papillae or pores. Post-
8+22;poredlateral-linescales30;scalerows orbital canal with two bony bridges delin-
above lateral line 8; abdominal scutes 9; eating three membrane-roofed spaces.
vertebrae 14+16. Head length 18.8; pre- Preopercular canal with two bony bridges
dorsal length 21.4; prepelvic length 18.6; nearangle. Mandibularcanalwithtwopores
body depth 19.1; caudal-peduncle depth through bone anteriorly, followed posteri-
10.1; caudal-peduncle length 13.9; snout orly by long trough with two bony bridges
length 17.7; eye 9.0; orbit 9.4; light-organ nearjunction with preopercular canal. Ca-
length 6.7; light organ depth 2.6; pectoral- nals of cranium covered by skin that ap-
fin length 12.5; pelvic-fin length 9.2; first pears smooth and entire, exceptfortwo lat-
dorsal-spine length 2.9; fifth dorsal-spine eral and one medial frontal pores above
length 4.4. orbit,twosmallporesonsupraorbitalcanal,
Body compressed, width 3.2 in depth. and small temporal pore on right side. Eye
Backsomewhatelevated, body depth 1.5 in prominent,itsdiameteraboutequaltopost-
length without head. Snout blunt, profile orbital head length. Much ofcornea black,
mm
sloping forward without much curvature withsubsphericalclearwindow6.0 long
mm mm
from occiputtobefore eye, then descending by 5.0 high. Pupil 4.0 in diameter.
convexly to rostrum. Nostrils just before Single fleshy tubercle on posterior margin
eye, anterior with thickened posterior rim. ofeye on level with lower margin ofpupil.
Mouth oblique, tip oflowerjaw about Va of Ovoid luminous organ below eye, free ex-
eye height above lower margin of eyeball, cept at anterior end, rotatable so that lu-
upper jaw slightly included. Maxilla ex- minous face can be rotated downward into
tending posteriorly to about middle ofeye. pocketformedbyflaredinfraorbitals. Outer
Posterior supramaxilla ovoid with an an- margin of adpressed organ well below in-
terior process, covering all but posteroven- fraorbital rim. Black elastic shutter mem-
tral comer ofmaxilla. Anterior supramax- brane attached along lateral margin ofsub-
illa substantially smaller with no anteriorly orbital pocket, lying flat on floor ofpocket
directed process. Premaxillae with pro- whenrelaxed,withfreemargindirectedme-
nounced notch at symphysis into which dially.
lowerjaw fits. Jaw teeth in bands, premax- Scales strongly ctenoid (ct' of Johnson
330 PROCEEDINGSOFTHEBIOLOGICALSOCIETYOFWASHINGTON
Fig. 1. Holotype ofParmops coruscans, BPBM 30885. A. Whole specimen in lateral view, light organ
occluded. B. Head indorsolateralview, lightorganexposed.
1984), small, and difficult to enumerate be- Gill rakers on first arch well developed,
cause of irregular arrangement, approxi- lath-like; length of first raker below angle
mately 100 lateral body rows. Head scale- about Vi eye diameter; rakers becoming
less except for a few irregular scales at shorter on succeeding arches, those on last
anterodorsal comer of opercle, along pre- arch nubbins. Pseudobranch well devel-
opercleandoncheek. Gularisthmusnaked, oped, with about 18 filaments, longest
with transverse fleshy ridges. No cycloid slightlylongerthanfilamentsoffirstgillarch.
scales on body. Scale sheaths well-devel- Spinous dorsal fin relatively low, first
oped at bases ofdorsal and anal fins. Mid- spine about halflength ofsucceeding four,
ventral row of 9 enlarged keeled scales which are subequal. Dorsal and anal soft
(scutes) along abdomen. rays mostly broken. First anal spine about
VOLUME NUMBER
104, 2 331
Mf
.
Fig. 2. HolotypeofParmopscoruscans. Head, lightorgan occluded, with outlineoffrontal viewto leftand
light organ and associated structures, removed, below: LD, Ligament ofDiogenes; LO, light organ; M, stalk
muscle; SN, rudiment ofshutterknob; ST, stalk.
equal in length to first dorsal spine. Second withnoattenuationatthecommissure. Pos-
anal-finraya spineintransition, segmented teriorlythe stalkarticulateslooselywith the
at tip. Caudal-fin rays broken. supporting fibrocartilage cup of the organ
Pectoral fin angulate, length about 1.5 in andisattachedtoit bytwo short ligaments.
head, thirdthrough sixth rays subequal and Theanteroventralcomerofthecupextends
longest. Pelvic fin shorterthan pectoral, ex- forward as a short process that is connected
tending to within 0.4 eye diameter ofanal- directly by one ofthe short ligaments to the
fin origin. Color black, fins and lower part posteroventral comer of the stalk, which
ofhead darkest. Lateral line conspicuously bears no ventral hook. There is no discrete
paler than rest ofbody. shutterknob, butthereisa slightthickening
Etymology.—¥rom the Latin coruscans, at the anterodorsal comer of the shutter.
sparkling, inreferenceto thesubocularlight The cup is a crescentic structure that em-
organ. braces the anterior end of the light organ
Occlusion mechanism.—The light organ, and extends posteriorly along about two-
stalk and supporting cup are shown in Fig. thirds ofits ventral surface. Anteriorly, the
2. The light organ is borne on a fibrocarti- cup is expanded as a medially projecting
lagestalkthatiscontinuousacrossthesnout shelf The stalk muscle is relatively small,
332 PROCEEDINGSOFTHEBIOLOGICALSOCIETY OFWASHINGTON
Table 1.—States ofcharacters not associated with Table2.—Light-organassociatedcharacterstatesin
hght-organ complex in Parmops. (Characters num- Parmops. (CharactersnumberedasinJohnson&Ro-
beredas inJohnson & Rosenblatt 1988). senblatt 1988).
1 Epipleuralribs 2 I AttachmentofLD oncup Lateral
2 Branchiostegals Spiny II AttachmentofLD anteriorly Maxilla
3 Openings in parsjugularis ? III Cupwith medial shelf Moderate
4 Parasphenoid flanges ? IV Insertion ofstalkmuscle dor- Ligament
—
5 Swimbladderstay sally to cup
6 Postorbitalpapillae 1 V Stalkwith inward flexureat —
7 Cephalic sensorycanal covering Smooth** cuparticulation
—
8 Lateral-linetubes Closed VI Rotationpad
—
9 Midventralscutes Continuous VII Postocularskin flap
Dorsal Fin V-I, 16 villa Erectileshutter +*
10 Predorsals 0/0/1+1/ Vlllb Shutterknob —
11 Supramaxillae 2* IX Stalkhook
12 Transverseridges ongularisth- +* X Stalkcontinuousacross snout +*
mus XIa EM withgroove +*
13 Lateraldentarytooth patch Large "V"* Xlb EM with medial swelling
14 Body scale rows ca. 100* XII Hookand shutterknob inti- NA
15 Reflectiveortransparentlateral +* matelyassociated
line scales XIII Cupprocess attachedto stalk NA
16 Pelvic spine + hookby ligament
17 Anal spines II XIV Organrotatable +
18 Vertebrae 14+16
19 Comerofmaxilla Smooth *Derived states, all shared with Phthanophaneron,
Kryptophanawn, andPhotoblepharon.
*DerivedstatessharedwithPhthanophaneron(lacks
15), Kryptophanaron, and Photoblepharon.
**Derived state shared as a homoplasy with Kryp- sertion on the maxilla, giving rise to a
tophanaron. broader but thinner segment that passes
ventrally to insert on the palatine.
withlittledifferentiationbetweenthedorsal Relationships.—In physiognomy, Par-
portion, which inserts on the dorsal liga- mopsmostcloselyresemblesPhthanophan-
ment that connects the cup and stalk, and eron, and this similarity is reflected in the
the ventral portion, which inserts on the primitive nature of the light occlusion
articular termination ofthe stalk. The Lig- mechanism as well. Table 1 lists characters
ament of Diogenes attaches to the antero- not associated with the light organ mecha-
medial comer ofthe cup shelfand runs an- nism and Table 2 lists those that are. Our
terodorsally, passes over a slight groove in hypothesis ofrelationships based on these
the ethmomaxillary ligament at its forward charactersispresentedinFig. 3. Amongthe
flexure, and inserts onthe lateral face ofthe characters not associated with the light or-
rostral cartilage. The ethmomaxillary liga- gan mechanism, Parmops shares five de-
mentoriginatesdorsallyonthemesethmoid rived states with the Phthanophaneron-
and extends ventrally, flexes anteroventral- Kryptophanaron-Photoblepharon (hereafter
lyatthegroove, andthenpassesaroundthe P.-K.-P.) clade and none with Anomalops.
cartilaginous tip ofthe palatine to insert on Foroneofthosefiveapomorphies,thepres-
the ventrolateral margin ofthe maxillajust ence ofreflective or transparent lateral-line
ventral to its head. The groove in the eth- scales (character 15), there is an alternative
momaxillary ligament is weakly developed interpretation equally parsimonious to the
and there is no notable swelling on the me- topology shown on the cladogram, i.e., in-
dial surface ofthe latter. The ethmomaxil- dependent acquisition in Parmops and at
lary ligament branchesjust dorsal to its in- the K.-P. node rather than reversal in
.
VOLUME NUMBER
104, 2 333
XII -XV
8- 10
Vlllb, IX
Villa, X.XIa
11 - 15
Fig. 3. Cladogramofanomalopidgenera. CharactersasinTables 1 and 2. Parenthesesandbracketsrespec-
tivelydenotehypothesizedindependentacquisitions and reversals.
Phthanophaneron. Ofthe light-organ asso- Museum, made it available to us for study.
ciated characters, Parmops shares three, an W. D. Anderson, R. Birdsong, J. E. Mc-
erectile shutter, a continuous stalk, and a CoskerandR. Varicriticallyreadthemanu-
grooveintheethmomaxillaryligament,with script. The drawings were executed by P.
theP.-K.-P. clade.Parmopsisprimitivewith Hollingsworth.
respect to members of that clade in two
states, absence ofa stalk hook and shutter
knob. Parmops is thus placed at the base of Literature Cited
the shutter-mechanism lineage, as the sister
Harvey, E. N. 1922. The production oflight by the
group oftheP.-K.-P. clade. These fourgen- fishes, Photoblepharon and Anomalops.—Pub-
eraostensivelyprovidearare illustration of lications ofthe Carnegie Institution, Washing-
the gradual evolutionary elaboration of a ton 312:45-61.
functionalcomplex, inwhicheachgenusex- Johnson, G. D. 1984. Percoidei: development and
hibits a slightly more intricate and inte- Jr.elRaitcihoansrhdisp,s.D.PpM..46C4o-he4n9,8Min.HP..GF.ahMaoys,erA., WW..
grated linkage system to effect shutter erec- Kendall,Jr.,andS. L. Richardson,eds..Ontog-
tion. enyandsystematicsoffishes.AmericanSociety
of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special
Acknowledgments Publication No. 1
& R. H. Rosenblatt. 1988. Mechanisms of
,
We wish to thankJ. E. McCosker for ser- lightorgan occlusion in flashlight fishes, family
endipitously bringing the present specimen Anomalopidae (Teleostei: Beryciformes), and
theevolutionofthegroup.—ZoologicalJournal
to our attention. L. Wrobel obtained the
ofthe Linnean Society 94:65-96.
specimen, recognized its interest, and pre- McCosker, J. E., & R. H. Rosenblatt. 1987. Notes
served it. J. E. Randall, Bemice P. Bishop on the biology, taxonomy, and distribution of
334 PROCEEDINGSOFTHEBIOLOGICALSOCIETYOFWASHINGTON
anomalopid fishes (Anomalopidae: Beryci- (RHR) Scripps Institution of Oceanog-
formes).—Japanese Journal ofIchthyology 34: raphy, La JoUa, California 92093; (GDJ)
157-164. Division of Fishes, National Museum of
Rosenblatt,R.H.,&W.L.Montgomery. 1976. Kryp-
tophaneronharveyi,anewanomalopidfishfrom Natural History, Smithsonian Institution,
the eastern tropical Pacific, and the evolution Washington, D.C. 20560.
oftheAnomalopidae.—Copeia 1976:510-515.
