Redescription of Eptatretus luzonicus Fernholm et al., 2013, 
a Replacement Name for Eptatretus fernholmi McMillan 
and Wisner, 2004 (Craniata: Myxinidae), Based on the 
Discovery of the Holotype and Additional Specimens 
from the Philippines 
Michael Maia Mincarone i and John E. McCosker 2 
^ Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro {UFRJ), Niicleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Socioamhiental 
{NUPEM), Caixa Postal 119331, Macae, RJ, 27910-970, Brazil; E-mail: mincarone@macae:ufrj.br; 
2 Califomia Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, 94118, USA; E-mail: jmccosker@calacademy.org 
The holotype of the hagfish Eptatretus luzonicus {= Eptatretus fernholmi) (Myx¬ 
inidae), lost prior to its description, was found and is redescribed along with five 
additional specimens trapped at 578-710 m depth between Luzon and Mindoro 
islands during the 2011 California Academy of Sciences Hearst Philippine Expedi¬ 
tion. In addition, a single specimen of Myxine cf. formosana, previously known from 
Taiwan, was also trapped at the same location, between 587 and 604 m depth. 
Keywords: Myxinidae; Eptatretus luzonicus’, Eptatretus fernholmi', redescription; taxo¬ 
nomic history; Philippines. 
On 16 October 1907, the U.S. Fish Commission Steamer Albatross left San Francisco on her 
way to Manila for the longest and most extensive expedition of the ship’s career. It took about 2.5 
years before the Albatross crossed the Golden Gate again, bringing in her holds thousands of fish¬ 
es and invertebrates that were later deposited in the U.S. National Museum, Smithsonian Institu¬ 
tion. The number of fishes collected during the Albatross Philippine Expedition is difficult to cal¬ 
culate but it was estimated at about 100,000 specimens (Smith and Williams 1999), including a sin¬ 
gle hagfish specimen. This specimen remained unnamed for many years until it was described as 
Eptatretus fernholmi McMillan and Wisner, 2004, a name recently replaced by Eptatretus luzoni¬ 
cus Fernholm, Noren, Kullander, Quattrini, Zintzen, Roberts, Mok, and Kuo, 2013. 
Neai'ly a century later, the Califomia Academy of Sciences Hearst Expedition to the Philip¬ 
pines included a voyage aboard the MW DA-BFAR in the vicinity of the Verde Island Passage and 
the Calavite Passage (between Luzon and Mindoro islands). Although the deepwater marine por¬ 
tion of the Hearst Expedition was limited in duration and coverage, it was able to capture, photo¬ 
graph, and study numerous fishes and invertebrates that were poorly known or new to science. 
From 28 May to 4 June 2011, a total of 29 bottom trawl stations were made between 82 and 
2217 m and eight trap stations were set from 60-841 m depth. Six spechnens of hagfishes were 
trapped: a single specunen tentatively identified as Myxine fbrmosana Mok and Kuo, 2001, previ¬ 
ously reported from Taiwanese waters, and five additional specimens of EptaFetus luzonicus, pre¬ 
viously known only from the damaged and lost holotype collected from the Philippines. The dis¬ 
covery of the holotype and additional material of E. luzonicus deserve special discussion and that 
is the purpose of this paper. 
Materials and Methods 
Measurements and counts (Table 1) and the names for anatomical structures follow Fernholm 
and Hubbs (1981), McMillan and Wisner (1984), Wisner and McMillan (1995), and Mok (2001). 
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