Humpback Handfish

Member of the genus Brachiopsilus with a combination of the following characters: escasmall, 23–30% of illicium length; illicium smooth, thin, not exceedingly fleshy, length 13–16% SL, 3.1–3.6 times in head length, 2.1–2.3 times in length of second dorsal-fin spine; apex of esca situated above anterior half of eye when illicium adpressed; esca slightly wider than illicial stem, covered with dense, short, filaments; head slightly compressed; eye large (horizontal diameter 7–9% SL); mouth narrow; lips fleshy with prominent vertical folds; body and fins entirely naked (except for scales associated with pores of the acoustico-lateralis system and minute, deeply embedded scale and spinule fragments); long first dorsal-fin base (length 29–30% SL); second dorsal-fin rays 17, fin base 77–79% SL; length of second dorsal-fin spine 1.1–1.2 times length of longest ray of second dorsal fin; 10 anal-fin rays, length of anal-fin base 40–44% SL; 9 pectoral-fin rays; caudal peduncle short, length about 2% SL; caudal fin elongate, its length much longer than fin rays of pectoral fin, length 4.1–5.2 times caudal peduncle depth; body colour off white with yellowish patches on sides, uniformly white in preservative (Ref. 82446).

Dorsal soft rays (total): 19; Analsoft rays: 10