Description

Dorsal spines (total): 10 - 11; Dorsal soft rays (total): 11 - 13; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 11 - 12; Vertebrae: 26. Anterior nostril a short tube without cirrus on posterior rim; posterior end of maxilla rigid, without thin flexible lamina; opercle with prominent wedge-shaped dark blotch; buccal cavity and inner lining of maxilla and adjacent membranes immaculate; dorsal fin spines slender, straight, with rigid sharp tip; nape completely scaled; cheeks with 4 or 5 rows of scales; segmented anal fin rays 11 or 12; caudal vertebrae 16; pelvic fins elongate in adults 39-49% SL with tip of depressed fin extending posteriorly well past anal fin origin (Ref. 26893).

Common Names

No common names available.

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Teleostei

Order: Ovalentaria/misc

Family: Opistognathidae

Genus: Opistognathus

Species: Opistognathus leprocarus Smith-Vaniz, 1997

Climate Zone

Location

Biology

Observed using shells and rubble to close their burrow opening (Ref. 26893).

Habitat

bathydemersal