PIETSCH: LOPHIIFORMES 



323 



Fig. 165. "Scutatus" prejuvenile oi Amennarius radiosus, 21.2 mm XL, USNM 251937-F21. North Atlantic, 36°30'N, 74°30'W; drawn by 

 B. Washington. 



highly-inflated skin (Fig. 164E; for details see Bertelsen, 1951; 

 Bertelsen, this volume). 



Meristic characters that typify the early life stages of ceratioids 

 are summarized for all eleven families and compared to those 

 of other lophiiforms in Table 88. 



Relationships 



Since Regan (1912a), three major lophiiform taxa of equal 

 rank have been recognized by nearly all authors. These taxa, 

 together with their currently recognized families (the eleven 

 families of the bathypelagic Ceratioidei excluded; see Bertelsen, 

 this volume), are: Suborder Lophioidei — Family Lophiidae; 

 Suborder Antennarioidei — Families Antennariidae, Tetrabra- 

 chiidae, Lophichthyidae, Brachionichthyidae, Chaunacidae, and 

 Ogcocephalidae; Suborder Ceratioidei. , 



On the basis of adult characters alone, Pietsch (1981:416, fig. 

 41) attempted to test the validity of Regan's (1912a) three 

 major lophiiform taxa using cladistic methodology, but ran into 

 serious difficulty in attempting to establish monophyly for the 

 Antennarioidei; while a number of synapomorphic features were 

 found to support a sister-group relationship between the four 

 families Antennariidae through Brachionichthyidae, and be- 

 tween the families Chaunacidae and Ogcocephalidae, no con- 

 vincing synapomorphy was found to link these two larger 

 subgroups. 



To date, early life history stages have not been used in for- 

 mulating hypotheses of relationship among lophiiform fishes; 

 but, several egg and larval characters are shown here to be 

 significant in resolving a number of problems with this group. 

 These characters, along with several previously unidentified adult 

 characters, have been used here to construct a revised cladogram 

 of lophiiform relationships (Fig. 166). 



This new cladogram differs significantly from that previously 

 published (Pietsch, 1981: fig. 4 1 ). The suborder Antennarioidei 



is now restricted to only four families: The Antennariidae, rec- 

 ognized as the primitive sister-group of the Tetrabrachiidae, 

 these two families together forming the primitive sister-group 

 of the Lophichthyidae, and this assemblage of three families 

 forming the primitive sister-group of the Brachionichthyidae. 

 These relationships are supported by a total of seven synapo- 

 morphies (most of which were previously described by Pietsch, 

 1981:413-414) numbered 7 through 13 in Fig. 166: (7) Pos- 

 teromedial process of vomer emerging from ventral surface as 

 a laterally-compressed, keel-like structure, its ventral margin (as 

 seen in lateral view) strongly convex (Pietsch, 1981:397, figs. 

 4-6); (8) Postmaxillary process of premaxilla spatulate (Pietsch, 

 1981:398, figs. 8, 20); (9) Opercle similarly reduced in size 

 (Pietsch, 1981:401, figs. 9, 21); (10) Ectoplerygoid triradiate, a 

 dorsal process overlapping the medial surface of the metapter- 

 ygoid (Pietsch. 1981:400, figs. 9, 21, 22); (11) Proximal end of 

 hypobranchials II and III bifurcated (Pietsch, 1981:407, figs. 11, 

 28. 29); (12) Interhyal with a medial, posterolaterally directed 

 process that comes into contact with the respective preopercle 

 (Pietsch, 1981:400, fig. 26); and (13) Illicial pterygiophore and 

 pterygiophore of the third dorsal spine with highly compressed, 

 blade-like dorsal expansions (Pietsch, 1981:410, figs. 36, 37). 



The present interpretation of lophiiform relationships differs 

 further from any previously proposed hypothesis in considering 

 the Antennarioidei (sensu stricto) to form the primitive sister- 

 group of a much larger group that includes the Chaunacioidei 

 (new suborder), the Ogcocephalioidei (new suborder) and the 

 Ceratioidei. The Ogcocephalioidei is, in turn, recognized as the 

 primitive sister-group of the Ceratioidei (Fig. 166). 



Monophyly for a group containing the suborders Antenna- 

 rioidei, Chaunacioidei. Ogcocephalioidei and Ceratioidei is sup- 

 ported by four, previously unidentified synapomorphies (num- 

 bered as they appear in Fig. 1 66): ( 1 4) Eggs and larvae small (at 

 all stages eggs are considerably less than 50% the diameter of 



