| Family | Scientific Name | Author | Year | Common Name |
| Notosudidae | Scopelosaurus smithii | Bean | 1925 | Fewraker Paperbone |
All Scopelosaurus Species: Pelvic fin inserts distinctly in front of dorsal-fin origin. Posterior infraorbital bones with posterior expansions (FAO 2002).
Scopelosaurus smithii
Unique Characteristics: Gill rakers 12-16. Pyloric caeca 12-16. Body depth 8.8-9.9% standard length (inspecim ens larger than 10.0 cm standard length). Dark brownish to blackish on head and upper parts of body, somewhat lighter on inferior parts (FAO 2020).
The head is contained 3 2/3 times in the standard body length; eye four in head, its long diameter slightly exceeding the width of the interorbital space. Depth of body 2 1/2 in head; pectoral long, almost one-fifth length of body. Dorsal 11; anal 18; scales in the lateral series about 60; caudal fin deeply incised, its lobes filamentous. Owing to the manner of capture the scales are mostly wanting. The color must have been a deep purplish black. The species here briefly described is well differentiated from its Indo-Pacific relative [Scopelosaurus hoedti, Bleeker 1860], by the longer head, larger eye, longer pectorals and caudal rays. The total length of the type, 190 mm, is divided as follows: Length of head, 45 mm; body from end of head to middle caudal rays, 120 mm; caudal, 25 mm. The type is No. 86676, U. S. National Museum. Captured off the coast of Brazil (Bean 1925).
Similar Species:
Scopelosaurus argenteus, Silver Paperbone
Silver Paperbone, Scopelosaurus argenteus. Gill rakers 12-16. Pyloric caeca 20-32. Body depth 11.0-11.9% standard length in specimens larger than 15.0 cm standard length. Despite its name probably not silver-scaled (FAO 2020).
Scopelosaurus lepidus, Blackfin Waryfish
Blackfin Waryfish, Scopelosaurus lepidus. Gill rakers 17 or 18. Pyloric caeca 16-30. Pectoral fins long, 18.6-30.6% standard length at any size. Vertebrae 58-61. Black patch covering the basal 2/3 of pectoral fins in specimens larger than 12.0 cm standard length (FAO 2020).
Scopelosaurus mauli, Tropical Waryfish
Tropical Waryfish, Scopelosaurus mauli.
Note: The species description of Scopelosaurus mauli Bertelsen, Kreft, and Marshall, 1976 (Bertelsen, E., G. Krefft and N.B. Marshall. 1976. The fishes of the family Notosudidae. Dana Report No. 86: 1-114, Pl. 1.) was not available via the Internet and could not be provided.
References:
Bean, B. A. 1925. Description of a new species of luminous lizard fish, Scopelosaurus smithii, from off the coast of Brazil. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 38: 13-14.
(FAO 2020) Sutton, T.T., P.A. Hulley, R. Wienerroither, D. Zaera-Perez, and J.R. Paxton. 2020. Identification guide to the mesopelagic fishes of the central and south east Atlantic Ocean. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. Rome, FAO. 2020. https://doi.org/10.4060/cb0365en.