Ghost Hagfish

This species is distinguished from all its congeners, except M. debueni, M. fernholmi, M. garmani by having six pairs of gill pouches and a 3/2 multicusp pattern of teeth; differs from these congeners by the number of prebranchial pores 18-24 (vs. 27-29 in M. garmani); trunk pores 64-75 (vs. 76 in M. debueni, 80-83 in M. fernholmi, 52-61 in M. garmani); tail pores 6-10 (vs. 12-13 in M. garmani); total pores 90-106 (vs. 113-121 in M. fernholmi); with two bilaterally symmetrical nasal-sinus papillae in the dorsal surface of the nasal sinus (vs. one single nasal-sinus papilla in M. debueni); a totally unpigmented body, which makes its skin transparent in live specimens, a unique character not described for any other species of Myxine (Ref. 123790).