142 
Fishery Bulletin 96( 1 ), 1998 
(Uruguay and Argentina; partial synonymy; com- 
mon names). 
Symphurus pterospilotus (not of Ginsburg, 1951). Lema 
and Oliveira, 1977:7 (in part; southern Brazil). 
Symphurus tessellatus (Quoy and Gaimard). Munroe, 
1991:269 (Greater Antilles and Central America 
to Uruguay; removed from synonymy of S. plagusia 
(Schneider, in Bloch and Schneider); redescription 
and diagnosis; nomenclature; synonymy; counts, 
measurements, photograph; in key; bathymetric 
distribution; size and sexual maturity). Munroe, 
1992:371, 382 (ID pattern; geographic, bathymet- 
ric distributions). Cervigon et al., 1993:305-306 
(Venezuela; descriptive characters; distribution; 
figure). 
Diagnosis Symphurus tessellatus is distinguished 
from all congeners by the following combination of 
characters: predominant 1-4-3 ID pattern; 12 cau- 
dal-fin rays; 4 hypurals; 91-102 dorsal-fin rays; 74- 
86, usually 78-84, anal-fin rays; 48-54, usually 50- 
53 total vertebrae; 81-96, usually 83-93 scales in 
longitudinal series; unpigmented peritoneum; mod- 
erately large eye (79-114 HL, ic=95) without pupil- 
lary operculum; 4-8 small ctenoid scales on blind 
sides of dorsal- and anal-fin rays (best developed on 
fin rays in posterior one-third of body in specimens 
larger than 70 mm); lacking fleshy ridge on ocular- 
side lower jaw; moderately long jaws usually extend- 
ing to vertical through middle or posterior margin of 
pupil of lower eye; margin of ocular-side dentary usu- 
ally with single, mostly incomplete row of teeth; pre- 
maxilla on ocular side either lacking teeth or with 
very short row of teeth on anterior margin; dorsal- 
fin origin reaching vertical through anterior margin 
of upper eye, or occasionally only reaching vertical 
through middle of upper eye; ocular-surface pigmen- 
tation dark to light brown, with 5-9 well-developed, 
sharply contrasting, relatively wide, dark brown 
crossbands on head and trunk, but without pig- 
mented blotch on caudal region of body; distinct, dark 
brown or black, almost spherical blotch on outer sur- 
face of ocular-side opercle; inner lining of opercle and 
isthmus heavily pigmented on both sides of body; 
dorsal and anal fins without an alternating series of 
pigmented blotches and unpigmented areas and with- 
out spots; anterior dorsal- and anal-fin rays usually 
streaked with brown pigment; dorsal- and anal-fin 
rays and membranes on posterior two-thirds of body 
becoming progressively darker posteriorly; males 
with posteriormost regions of fins almost uniformly 
black, whereas in females, posterior portions of fins, 
although darker than anterior regions, usually dark 
brown and not as intensively pigmented as in ma- 
ture males; caudal fin without spots or blotches. 
Description A large species attaining maximum 
sizes to 220 mm SL. ID pattern (Table 2) usually 1-4-3 
(209/278 specimens), less frequently 1-5-3 (15), 1-4- 
2 (11), or 1-3-3 (10). Caudal-fin rays usually 12 (249/ 
273), less frequently 10, 11, or 13 (Table 3). Dorsal- 
fin rays 91-102, usually 93-101 (Table 4). Anal-fin 
rays 74-86, usually 78-84 (Table 5). Total vertebrae 
48-54, usually 50-53 (275/282) (Table 6). Hypurals 
4 (273/273). Longitudinal scale rows 81-96, usually 
83-93 (Table 7). Scale rows on head posterior to lower 
orbit 18-23, usually 20-22 (Table 8). Transverse 
scales 38-45 (Table 9). 
Proportions of morphometric features presented in 
Table 39. Body relatively elongate, only moderately 
deep; with greatest depth usually occurring in ante- 
rior one-third of body; body depth tapering fairly 
gradually posterior to midpoint. Preanal length con- 
siderably shorter than body depth. Head wide, some- 
what narrower than body depth. Head length shorter 
than head width (HW:HL=1. 1-1.4, 5c =1.2). Lower 
head lobe width somewhat less than postorbital 
length; narrower than upper head lobe. Lower oper- 
cular lobe on ocular side wider than upper opercular 
lobe. Snout moderately long and somewhat pointed; 
covered with small ctenoid scales. Dermal papillae 
well developed, but not particularly dense, on snout 
Table 39 
Morphometries for 22 specimens of Symphurus tessellatus. 
(Abbreviations defined in methods section; SL is expressed 
in mm; characters 2 to 14 are expressed in thousandths of 
SL; 15 to 21 in thousandths of HL; n = no. of specimens 
measured). 
Character 
n 
Range 
Mean 
SD 
1. SL 
22 
97.9-203 
145.0 
27.66 
2. BD 
22 
247-312 
280.2 
18.82 
3. PDL 
22 
32-48 
41.7 
4.48 
4. PAL 
22 
181-227 
204.7 
10.58 
5. DBL 
22 
952-968 
958.3 
4.48 
6. ABL 
22 
771-876 
798.0 
22.90 
7. PL 
22 
44-73 
59.0 
6.47 
8. PA 
22 
27-56 
41.5 
6.01 
9. CFL 
22 
72-118 
90.9 
10.36 
10. HL 
22 
170-199 
186.6 
7.37 
11. HW 
22 
193-247 
218.6 
15.58 
12. POL 
22 
117-135 
125.9 
5.38 
13. UHL 
22 
113-163 
143.3 
12.03 
14. LHL 
22 
80-114 
97.8 
10.56 
15. POL 
22 
593-723 
674.9 
25.07 
16. SNL 
22 
196-231 
215.7 
9.25 
17. UJL 
22 
222-278 
248.1 
15.58 
18. ED 
22 
79-114 
95.2 
10.06 
19. CD 
22 
173-322 
245.0 
31.85 
20. OPLL 
22 
243-359 
306.8 
31.68 
21. OPUL 
22 
161-252 
205.7 
24.03 
