Author: (Poll, 1953)
Pollichthys mauli (Poll, 1953)
Status in World Register of Marine Species:
Accepted name: Pollichthys mauli (Poll, 1953) (updated 2009-06-25)
Diagnosis: body elongate, tail slender; eyes normal; mouth large; premaxillary teeth uniserial, dentary teeth biserial anteriorly; gillrakers on first arch 11-13 + 46 = 15-19; branchiostegal rays 12, 4 on epihyal. Dorsal finrays 10 -12, followed by a dorsal adipose fin long based, situated slightly posterior to anal midpoint; pectoral finrays 8; pelvic finrays 6-7, its base well in advance of dorsal fin origin; anal finrays 24-26, its origin about beneath or anterior to dorsal midpoint, its base length more than twice dorsal fin base; last dorsal and anal finrays usually split to base. Vertebrae 43-44. Photophores (adult): ORB 2; SO l; BR 8; OP 3; IV 21-22 VAV 7-9; AC 18-21, eighth and/or ninth AC photophore(s) slightly eievated; AC level, 13-15 over anal fin; OA 19-21. Glandular material absent on head and body. Colour: hack dark. flanks silverv. Size: to 60 mm SL.
Habitat: circumglobal, tropical, oceanic, mesopelagic; pre-metamorphic post-larvae near surface; juveniles and adults centred at 300-600 m by day; diel vertical migrations; majority of juveniles and adults migrate into upper 200 m at night. Food: small crustaceans. Reproduction: dioecious; peak spawning in summer. Adult photophore complement attained at about 25-27 mm SL.
Distribution: tropical; rare in Clofnam area, but sampled occasionally in North Atlantic current region; northernmost record 60° N, 20° W; absent in Mediterranean.
Eggs, larvae and young stages. Grey, 1964: 119, fig. 28.
Otoliths (sagitta). No data.