Munroe: Systematics of western Atlantic Symphurus 
103 
lar ID patterns and overlapping vertebral counts. 
These data support conclusions arrived at by earlier 
workers that only one valid species should be recog- 
nized among this material, S.jenynsi Evermann and 
Kendall. 
In 1977, another nominal species featuring high 
vertebral, and dorsal- and anal-fin ray counts was 
described from this region when Lema and Oliveira 
described S. mericLionalis from three specimens from 
off southern Brazil. Purported diagnostic differences 
between this taxon and S. jenynsi were presence of 
11 caudal-fin rays (vs. 10 in S. jenynsi ) and differ- 
ences in eye diameter. Examination of the holotype 
and paratypes of S. mericLionalis and radiographs of 
these types revealed that all three specimens pos- 
sess 10 caudal-fin rays, not 11. Eye size for S.jenynsi 
measured in the present study (n= 30) varied from 
7.4 to 9.5% HL. Eye sizes for the three type speci- 
mens of S. mericLionalis are also within this range. 
Therefore, on the basis of overall similarities in ID 
patterns, body shapes, meristic and morphometric 
features, pigmentation patterns, and relative body 
sizes, I conclude that S. mericLionalis Lema and 
Oliveira is conspecific with S. jenynsi. 
In another, more recent study, Volcker and 
Andreata (1982) also reported that S.jenynsi had 11 
caudal-fin rays. This count is not supported by find- 
ings reported in Menezes and Benvegnu (1976) or 
results of this study (Table 3), where the typical count 
for this species is 10 caudal-fin rays. 
Comparisons Except for similarities in caudal-fin 
ray number, no other shallow-water, western Atlan- 
tic species has total vertebral or fin-ray counts over- 
lapping those observed in S. jenynsi (see Tables 4— 
7 ). Only some meristic features of S. tessellatus, which 
may occur sympatrically with S. jenynsi and S. 
oculellus (which is allopatric), approach those ob- 
served for S. jenynsi. Despite these superficial simi- 
larities, S.jenynsi is readily distinguished from both 
in having fewer caudal-fin rays (10 vs. 12 in these 
others) and by differences in other meristic features 
(less than 107 dorsal-fin rays, less than 90 anal-fin 
rays, and 55 or fewer total vertebrae in these other 
species). Although S.jenynsi sometimes has a dusky 
blotch on the outer surface of the ocular-side opercle, 
this pigment is quite different from the conspicuous 
black spot present on the outer opercle in S. 
tessellatus andS. oculellus. Symphurus jenynsi lacks 
the small scales covering the basal two-thirds of blind 
sides of most dorsal- and anal-fin rays in S. tessellatus 
(larger S.jenynsi occasionally have several small scales 
extending onto fin rays, but only on a few fin rays in 
the posteriormost region of the dorsal and anal fins). 
Other Atlantic tonguefishes with meristic features 
similar to those of S.jenynsi include three deepwater 
species, the western Atlantic, S. nebulosus, and two 
eastern Atlantic species, S. vanmelleae and S. 
ligulatus. Symphurus jenynsi differs from these rela- 
tively small, bathyal species in the following charac- 
ters (those of S. jenynsi listed first): caudal-fin ray 
count ( 10 vs. 12 in S. vanmelleae; 14 in S. ligulatus 
and S. nebulosus ); unpigmented peritoneum (vs. 
black in these others); and ID pattern (1-4-3-2-2 vs. 
1-2-2-2-1 or 1-2-2-1-2 in S. vanmelleae; 1-2-2-2-2 in 
S. ligulatus and S. nebulosus). These elongate, 
deep-sea tonguefishes also have relatively thin bod- 
ies and seldom attain sizes greater than 140 mm 
(usually smaller than 110 mm), whereas S.jenynsi 
is a thick-bodied species reaching 300 mm or larger. 
