56 
Fishery Bulletin 96(1 ), 1998 
Geographic distribution (Fig. 27) On the continen- 
tal shelf from the Straits of Florida in the eastern 
Gulf of Mexico (based on a single capture) but most 
common west and south of the Mississippi Delta re- 
gion on the inner continental shelf to Guyana (the 
easternmost capture at 58°53'W). There was also an 
unusual capture (UMML 1328), perhaps an expatri- 
ated individual, of an adult taken on the surface in 
the Sargasso Sea (29°55'N, 70°20'W). 
Throughout its range, S. pelicanus occurs prima- 
rily on silt and soft mud substrates in neritic wa- 
ters, including the continental shelf off the Missis- 
sippi Delta, west through the Gulf of Mexico to north- 
ern Mexico, exclusive of live-bottom areas off the 
Yucatan Peninsula (Hildebrand, 1954), and south 
through Caribbean regions of Central and South 
America to Guyana. Thus far, S. pelicanus is un- 
known from areas in the eastern and far southwest- 
ern Gulf of Mexico, the Antilles, or from Caribbean 
locations with narrow continental shelves, or exten- 
sive reef development and live-bottom habitats. 
Bathymetric distribution Symphurus pelicanus 
inhabits moderate depths (24-133 m) on the inner 
continental shelf (Table 10). Of 64 specimens with 
depth information, the majority (49/64, 75%) were 
collected between 31 and 70 m. The shallowest re- 
corded bottom capture was a solitary specimen (54.3 
mm; UMML 34371) at 24 m. An unusual capture of 
a 44.1-mm individual (UMML 1328) was at the sur- 
face in the Sargasso Sea (29°55'N, 70°20'W). Only 
13 specimens were collected deeper than 80 m, with 
the deepest of three specimens (UMML 30181) taken 
at 133 m. The depth range of S. pelicanus encom- 
passes those of S. parvus, S. diomedeanus, and S. 
tessellatus and some collections made off Panama and 
Colombia included all four species. 
Ecology Little is known of the ecology of this di- 
minutive flatfish. 
Comparisons Among Atlantic species of tongue- 
fishes, S. pelicanus is most similar in meristic fea- 
tures to the western Atlantic S. piger and eastern 
Atlantic S. nigrescens. Symphurus pelicanus differs 
substantially from these in having black pepper-dots 
(Fig. 5B) on the blind side of the body (absent in the 
others), and it also has lower meristic features (dor- 
sal-fin rays 77-85 vs. 80-88, usually 83-88 in S. 
piger, and 82-92 in S. nigrescens', anal-fin rays 64- 
70 vs. 68-74 in S. piger, and 69-79 in S. nigrescens', 
total vertebrae 43-46 vs. 45-49, usually 47-49 in S. 
piger, and 47-51 in S. nigrescens). Symphurus 
pelicanus can be distinguished further from S. piger 
Figure 27 
Geographic distribution of Symphurus pelicanus based on material examined (dis- 
cussion of geographic distribution appears in species account). 
