Species: Ariosoma anale, Longtrunk Conger

Ariosoma anale (Poey, 1860)

Longtrunk Conger

Body stout; tail 48-51% of TL; no pores over, between or behind eyes or on nape; snout round, projecting a little, its length ~equal to large eye; front nostril tubular, forward pointing near tip of snout; rear nostril a small oval hole in front of and a little below middle of eye; both lips with well developed flanges; jaw teeth small, pointed, in bands; teeth at top front of mouth in a patch about as long as broad, indistinctly separated from narrow top jaw tooth band; patch of teeth on roof of mouth doesn’t reach back to level of middle of top jaw band; length of gill opening < distance between gill openings under throat; upper edge of gill opening at middle of pectoral fin base; dorsal fin begins over pectoral fin base; pectoral well developed, long; dorsal and anal fins continuous with the tail fin; tip of tail blunt, stiff, with reduced tail fin; lateral line pores before anus 55-59.

Grey; dorsal, anal and pectoral fins black; stomach and intestine pale.

Reaches 36.3 cm.

Sandy bottoms.

Depth range: 11-200 m.

E and W Atlantic; the Gulf of Mexico to the Guianas.