Author: Menzies, 1791
Phtheirichthys lineatus Menzies, 1791
Status in World Register of Marine Species:
Accepted name: Phtheirichthys lineatus (Menzies, 1791) (updated 2009-06-25)
Diagnosis: body elongate. Dorsal and anal fins long; dorsal finrays 29-33; anal finrays 29-34; pectoral finrays 18-21; disc small, laminae 9-11; disc length 18-28% SL; gillrakers on lower limb 11-13; palatine teeth present; oral denticles absent. Vertebrae 39-41 (precaudal vertebrae 18). Colour: head and body pale, dark brown or blackish. Larger specimens with faint dark brown horizontal stripe on mid-side of body and narrow light stripe above and below dark stripe; outer portion of longer anterior rays of dorsal and anal fins light, remainder of fins blackish; margins of outer rays of caudal fin light, remainder blackish. Size: to 435 mm SL.
Habitat: oceanic species. Attaches to body or enters gill chamber of other fishes. Barracuda most frequent host, but also known from, for example, sea turtles. Food: no data. Reproduction: no data.
Distribution: a rare species in the Atlantic. Elsewhere, worldwide, in tropical and subtropical waters.
Eggs, larvae and young stages. Tåning, 1926: 1294, fig. 2;1927: 224-225, fig. 1.
Otoliths (sagitta). No data.