taxonID	type	description	language	source
03FF87E01607FFB0FF43FD03E5218F96.taxon	description	Figs. 1, 2	en	Prokofiev, Artem M., Kobyliansky, Stanislav G., Orlov, Alexei M. (2025): A new species of the eelpout genus Ophthalmolycus (Teleostei, Zoarcidae) from off South Orkney Islands, Weddell Sea. Zootaxa 5693 (3): 432-440, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8
03FF87E01607FFB0FF43FD03E5218F96.taxon	materials_examined	Holotype. IOM 03672, 184 mm SL (Fig. 1 A, B), 61 ° 11 ′ 51.9 ′′ – 61 ° 11 ′ 33.5 ′′ S, 47 ° 06 ′ 11.6 ′′ – 47 ° 06 ′ 59.6 ′′ W, depth 1,495 m, RV Akademik M. Keldysh, cruise 87, station 7371, Sigsbee trawl, 8 Feb 2022.	en	Prokofiev, Artem M., Kobyliansky, Stanislav G., Orlov, Alexei M. (2025): A new species of the eelpout genus Ophthalmolycus (Teleostei, Zoarcidae) from off South Orkney Islands, Weddell Sea. Zootaxa 5693 (3): 432-440, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8
03FF87E01607FFB0FF43FD03E5218F96.taxon	diagnosis	Diagnosis. A species of Ophthalmolycus as defined by Anderson (1992, 1994) and Matallanas (2011) with six branchiostegal rays, lachrymal enlarged and partly overlapping upper jaw, single posterior nasal pore, two postorbital pores (positions one and four), 6 + 0 infraorbital pores, lateral line double, 97 dorsal-fin rays, 79 anal-fin rays, 17 pectoral-fin rays, 23 abdominal and 101 total vertebrae, body scaled toward gill opening, scales present on abdomen, pectoral axil and in predorsal area, no pyloric caeca, pseudobranch present, head and body dark, lacking pattern, mouth cavity pale-coloured.	en	Prokofiev, Artem M., Kobyliansky, Stanislav G., Orlov, Alexei M. (2025): A new species of the eelpout genus Ophthalmolycus (Teleostei, Zoarcidae) from off South Orkney Islands, Weddell Sea. Zootaxa 5693 (3): 432-440, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8
03FF87E01607FFB0FF43FD03E5218F96.taxon	description	Description. Body distinctly elongated, deepest below anterior quarter of dorsal fin (9.7 in SL), tapered toward caudal fin, moderately compressed laterally in abdominal region, strongly laterally compressed in caudal region. Head moderately small and depressed, 6.3 in SL, its dorsal contour gently declined from nape to bluntly pointed snout; tip of snout broadly rounded in dorsal view; interorbital region flat. Snout 4.1 in head; eye elliptical, its horizontal diameter 1.6 times exceeding vertical diameter; upper rim of orbit entering dorsal contour of head; horizontal eye diameter 4.1 in head; interorbital space twice in horizontal diameter of eye. Nostril tube reaching dorsal edge of upper lip. Lachrymal enlarged, partly overlapping upper jaw, exceeding vertical diameter of eye in depth (Fig. 1 C). Mouth inferior, premaxillary dentition visible when mouth closed; upper jaw overhanging lower jaw, reaching posterior third of eye, covered by skin; mouth gape ending at mid-eye. Lips smooth. Upper lip fleshy, joined to snout at symphysis; lower-jaw symphysis truncated; labial lobes of lower jaw well-developed, with thickened free margin, originating just ahead of first pair of mandibular pores. Jaw teeth conical, sharp, arranged in four irregular rows at premaxillary and dentary symphyses, becoming biserial backward and uniserial in posteriormost portion of tooth-band, none enlarged. Vomerine and palatine teeth present, conical, weakly protruding through soft tissue of mouth roof. Vomerine tooth-patch nearly oval, with three very irregular rows of about dozen teeth; palatine teeth irregularly biserial in anteriormost portion of tooth-band, uniserial backward, 8 / 10 in number. Oral valve poorly developed. Gill opening slightly not reaching lower end of pectoral-fin base, ending immediately behind the level of pelvic-fin insertion when viewed from below. Gill-rakers knob-like, 3 + 11 in outer series on first arch, most developed rakers as long as broad, equal in length to interspace between fourth and fifth ceratobranchial rakers. Slit behind fourth gill arch present. Pseudobranch present, with four short elements. Opercular lobe narrow and pointed (Fig. 1 C). Cephalic lateralis system (Fig. 1 C) with moderately large pores, especially mandibular pores from second to seventh. Two nasal (anterior supraorbital) pores present; first nasal pore situated in front of nasal tubes, second nasal pore opens behind nasal tube and closer to eye than to snout tip. Two postorbital pores (first and fourth pores) present behind eye and just in front of upper end of gill opening. Six infraorbital pores, all on ventral ramus of bone chain and none from ascending ramus (6 + 0). Eight preoperculo-mandibular pores, four arising from dentary, one from anguloarticular and three from preopercle; eighth pore smallest, spaced, situated on a horizontal line passing through mid-eye. First pair of mandibular pores widely spaced. Coronal (interorbital) and occipital pores absent. Rows of free neuromasts arranged along temporal and occipital canals, in short rows on opposed sides in anteriormost predorsal area, before and behind preopercular canal, between anterior nasal pores of opposed sides and between first and second infraorbital and anterior nasal pores. Two body lateral lines formed by free neuromasts, poorly discernible. Upper lateral line mediolateral, possibly originating from level of anal-fin origin; lower lateral line medioventral, beginning from fourth postorbital pore, gently sloping in abdominal region and coursing ventrolaterally from just ahead of anus; both body lateral lines extending backward nearly to end of tail. Dorsal fin origin just posterior to vertical through pectoral-fin base; first two dorsal pterygiophores inserted in fourth interneural space (between fourth and fifth neural spines), with no free supraneurals; first three anal pterygiophores situated before first haemal spine. Third to tenth vertebral centra slightly asymmetrical. Pleural ribs present from third to last abdominal vertebrae (Fig. 1 B). Pectoral fin lanceolate, with middle rays longest, reaching anterior border of eye when pressed forward. Pectoral-fin base extending below to ventral contour of body. Pelvic fins inserted twice closer to lower end of pectoral-fin base than to vertical through last preopercular pore, 1.6 in horizontal eye diameter. Anus close to anal-fin origin. Abdominal fold absent. Pyloric caeca not developed. Scales on flanks and abdomen extending forward to gill opening and to base of pelvic fins; outer and inner sides of pectoral-fin axil, predorsal area and interspace between bases of pectoral and pelvic fins scaled; head and isthmus toward pelvic-fin bases scaleless, skin smooth. Skin covered vertical fins scaled nearly to tips of rays along whole fin length. Scales rounded, densely setting, with no or very narrow interspaces between neighboring scales except for abdomen from about two pelvic-fin lengths behind pelvic-fin bases to anus, where scales are widely spaced from each other (but closely spaced immediately behind pelvic-fin bases). About 40 scales in transverse row between dorsal-fin base and anal-fin origin. Color in preservative brown, contrasting with pale-colored scales, darker on branchiostegal membrane, opercular region and along distal margins of fins; abdomen gray (Fig. 1 A); symphysis of lower jaw pale; cephalic lateralis pores lighter than neighboring skin (Fig. 1 C); oral cavity pale, gill cavity dark, gill arches pigmented. Peritoneum black; stomach and intestine pale. Counts and proportions. Vertebrae 23 + 78 = 101; dorsal-fin rays 97, anal-fin rays 79, caudal-fin rays 10, pectoral-fin rays 17, pelvic-fin rays 3. Following proportions as percent of SL: HL 15.8, greatest width of head 7.6, depth of head at mid-orbit 6.0, snout length 3.8; horizontal and vertical eye diameter 3.8 and 2.5, respectively; interorbital width 1.9, upper-jaw length 6.5, length of gill opening 4.9, length of opercular lobe 1.9, length and width of longest gill-raker and interspace between fourth and fifth ceratobranchial rakers ~ 0.4, greatest body depth 10.3, body depth and width at anal-fin origin 9.8 and 6.0, respectively; predorsal and preanal distances 17.9 and 35.9, respectively; prepectoral and prepelvic distance 15.8 and 13.6, respectively; length of pectoral and pelvic fins 11.7 and 2.5, respectively; height of pectoral-fin base 3.8; caudal-fin length 3.3. Following proportions as percent of HL: greatest width of head 48.3, depth of head at mid-orbit 37.9, snout length 24.1; horizontal and vertical eye diameter 24.1 and 15.5, respectively; interorbital width 12.1, upper-jaw length 41.4, length of gill opening 31.0, length of opercular lobe 12.1, length and width of longest gill-raker and interspace between fourth and fifth ceratobranchial rakers 2.6, body depth at anal-fin origin 62.1, pectoral- and pelvic-fin length 74.1 and 15.5, respectively.	en	Prokofiev, Artem M., Kobyliansky, Stanislav G., Orlov, Alexei M. (2025): A new species of the eelpout genus Ophthalmolycus (Teleostei, Zoarcidae) from off South Orkney Islands, Weddell Sea. Zootaxa 5693 (3): 432-440, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8
03FF87E01607FFB0FF43FD03E5218F96.taxon	etymology	Etymology. The species name refers to the large lachrymal bone. It is derived from the Latin lacrima (“ tear ”) and the Greek megalos (“ large ”) and is used here as a masculine adjective in agreement with the generic name.	en	Prokofiev, Artem M., Kobyliansky, Stanislav G., Orlov, Alexei M. (2025): A new species of the eelpout genus Ophthalmolycus (Teleostei, Zoarcidae) from off South Orkney Islands, Weddell Sea. Zootaxa 5693 (3): 432-440, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8
03FF87E01607FFB0FF43FD03E5218F96.taxon	distribution	Distribution and bathymetric range. The new species is currently known solely by the holotype taken in the Weddell Sea off South Orkney Islands (Fig. 2) at lower bathyal depth (1,495 m).	en	Prokofiev, Artem M., Kobyliansky, Stanislav G., Orlov, Alexei M. (2025): A new species of the eelpout genus Ophthalmolycus (Teleostei, Zoarcidae) from off South Orkney Islands, Weddell Sea. Zootaxa 5693 (3): 432-440, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5693.3.8
