Flyingfish Tongue Eater

Glossobius impressus (Say, 1818)

Cymothoa impressa Say, 1818:397.—De Kay, 1844:48.

Ceratothoa linearis Dana, 1853:752, pl. 50: figs 1a–1d.—Gerstaecker, 1882:260.—Stebbing, 1893:354.—Richardson, 1901:221; 1901:529. Ceratothoa exocoeti Cunningham, 1871:499, pl. 59: fig. 5.—Gerstaecker, 1882:260.

Glossobius linearis.—Schioedte and Meinert, 1883:301, pl. 12: figs. 1–9.—Hansen, 1895:18, pl 2: figs. 2–2d.—Brian and Dartevelle, 1949:176. Ceratothoa impressa.—Richardson, 1905:234–236, figs. 236–240; 1913:2, 6.—Fowler, 1912:292–293, pl. 83.—Tattersall, 1921:214.—Stephensen, 1948:43–44, fig. 9.—Schultz, 1969:155–156, fig. 233.—Anonymous, 1971:16–17.—Lincoln, 1971a:103–104, photograph facing p. 90; 1971b:184.—Trilles, 1972:7–9, figs. 3–24, photographs 5, 6; 1973b:1253–1255, pl. 2: figs. 14–16.—Bowman, 1978:217.—Kussakin, 1979:287, fig. 153.—Kurochkin, 1980:289.

Meinertia impressa.—Nierstrasz, 1915:89–90; 1918:119.

Codonophilus impressus.—Nierstrasz, 1931:131.

Glossobius impressa.—Avdeev, 1981:1160, 1164; 1982a:70.

Glossobius impressus.—Avdeev, 1982b:65–67, fig. 2, no. 4; 1985:89.

Not Ceratothoa impressa.—Berkeley and Houde, 1978:636 [= Glossobius hemiramphi Williams and Williams, 1985].

MATERIAL.—ATLANTIC OCEAN: 60°42′N, 70°00′W, from (stomach ?) Thunnus albacares (Bonnaterre), R/V Delaware, 3 Oct 1957, non-ovigerous , 29.9 mm (USNM 216583). New Jersey: Off Cape May, ovigerous , 24.5 mm (holotype, ANSP 1608). 33°20′N, 59°50′W, from mouth of flying fish, coll. Dr. R.P. Campbell, 1954, ovigerous , approximately 28 mm, cephalon missing, and , 11.0 mm. West Indies: Anguilla, Bat Caves, electric light off Crocus Bay, sta 58–56, from T. albacares, 13 Apr 1958, immature , 19.8 mm (USNM 216582). North Atlantic: No other data, fish catalog no. 7272 and 6296, ovigerous , 34.5 mm (USNM 216584). 6°1′N, 41°31′W, 77 m depth, 2020–2355 hrs, Isaacs-Kidd midwater trawl, field no. RHB 961, Chain Cruise No. 35, ex Hirundichthys speculiger (Valenciennes) (MCZ 250414), coll. Dr. G.W. Mead, 12 Feb 1963, non-ovigerous , 36.0 mm (USNM 216581). Brazil: North of Sâo Luis (= Maranhâo), 2°23′N, 39°38′W, ex flying fish on board S.S. Vasari, coll. S.G. Davis, no date, non-ovigerous , 38.5 mm (USNM 46107). Off Rio de Janeiro, from mouth of flying fish Exocoetus sp., fish catalog no. 49090, coll. J.B. Hatcher, 1897, ovigerous , 33.5 mm and , 8.3 mm (USNM 22797). West Africa: Senegal, Dakar Harbor, no host, Geronimo sta 4–123, 5 Sep 1964, non-ovigerous , 27.9 mm (USNM 119491). 7°20′N, 25°20′W, catalogued 1884, don. W. Hower, ovigerous , 40.0 mm (BM(NH)). 5°0′S, 27°15′W, Terra Nova Expedition, ovigerous , approximately 40.0 mm, pleotelson detached (BM(NH) 1921.11.29.150). 10°48′S, 2°07′W, during voyage of Northumberland from Durban to Tenerife, ovigerous , 35.0 mm and , 8.5 mm (BM(NH)). No data except “from flying fish,” don. A.M. Norman, non-ovigerous , 34.0 mm (BM(NH)).

TYPES.—Holotype, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, ANSP 1608.

TYPE LOCALITY.—Cape May, New Jersey.

DESCRIPTION OF FEMALE.—Body from 3.0 to 3.5 times longer than wide, sides subparallel. Cephalon lateral margin converging slightly toward anterior, abruptly narrowed in front of eyes to form broad rostrum, appearing rounded or truncate in dorsal view, more acute in anterior perspective; eyes lateral, small, narrow, subtriangular, facets indistinct. Pereonite 1 longest, pereonites 2–4 subequal in length, slightly shorter than 1, pereonite 5 shorter than 4; pereonites 6 and 7 markedly shorter than other pereonites; pereonite 7 about 20% length of pereonite 1. Pereonite 1 not encompassing cephalon, anterior margin straight, not sinuate or lobed; lateral margins produced laterally to form bulbous lobe with lateral laminar flange; pereonite 2 with similar flanged lobe formed from coxae. Coxae of pereonites 2–5 far shorter than segment, coxae of pereonites 6 and 7 nearly as long as segment, those of pereonite 7 shorter on one side than on other. Pleonites of about equal length, pleonite 1 very narrow, pleonites 2–5 subequal in width. Pleotelson approximately rectangular, lateral margins nearly straight; posterior margin with median emargination, dorsal surface with median longitudinal depression.

Antennule composed of 7 articles, 1–3 broad, flattened, tending to fuse on dorsal surfaces. Antenna with 8 articles, 1–5 broad and flattened. Mandible palp large, 3-articled, folding across anterior to labrum. Maxillule slender, styliform, with 3–4 terminal spines. Maxilla broad, folded (Figure 16d) or simple (Figure 16m); lateral lobe with 12 (Figure 16d) or 20 (Figure 16m) spines, endopod with 9–11 spines. Maxilliped set distinctly posterior to other buccal appendages, with 2 large laminar oostegital lobes, proximal part of basal article fleshy, swollen; article 3 rounded, with 2 small spines.

Pereopod 1 short, merus weakly expanded posteriorly, dactylus extending to middle of carpus, pereopods 2 and 3 longer than 1, less robust, articles proportionally longer, dactylus much longer than in pereopod 1, extending to posterior of merus, pereopods 5–7 with merus anterior margin slightly dilated.

Pleopods all laminar, surfaces formed into fine nodular ridges except pleopod 1 endopod anterior surface which is smooth; peduncles narrow, without prominent lobes. Pleopod 1 largest, covering all other pleopods; pleopods becoming progressively smaller toward posterior; all rami (except pleopod 1 endopod) with depressions, in some cases forming folds or pockets. Pleopods 3–5 endopods with weakly developed proximomedial lobe. Uropods short, usually held under pleotelson posterior margin; exopod distinctly shorter than endopod.

DESCRIPTION OF MALE.—Very much smaller than female, body rectangular in shape, lacking distinctive pereonal morphology of female. Antennule with 7 articles, antenna with 9, neither with flattened articles. Mandible palp with setae; maxilla lateral lobe with 4 spines, endopod with 2. Maxilliped article 3 narrow, with 2 recurved terminal spines.

Pereopods similar to female but pereopod 1 not as robust, posterior pereopods with expansions of basis less developed. Penes elongate, apices lie between pleopod peduncles. Pleopods all simple, appendix masculina absent. Uropod exopod slightly longer than endopod.

COLOR.—Specimens all with cephalon, pereonites 1–3 and appendages appearing dark brown to nearly black, sometimes gradually lightening toward posterior; pleon, pleotelson, and pereopods 6 and 7 virtually without chromatophores.

SIZE.—Ovigerous females range from 24.5–40.0 mm, non-ovigerous females from 27.9–38.5 mm, males between 8.3 and 11.0 mm.

VARIATION.—There is considerable variation present in the detailed shape of the lateral extensions of pereonites 1 and 2, the blade like flanges varying from a large scoop to a weakly developed ridge. There is a substantial change in the appearance of the maxilliped between ovigerous and non-ovigerous females, that of the non-ovigerous female being far more heavily covered with scales and spinules and having the 2 spines on article 3 more prominent. The maxilla of some non-ovigerous females was folded and lobed (Figure 16d) and had fewer spines on the lateral lobe (12) than did ovigerous females (20).

DISTRIBUTION.—Tropical to subtropical Atlantic, but not yet recorded from the Caribbean. Trilles (1972) recorded this species from New Caledonia, and Nierstrasz (1915) reported it from Makassar Strait. Two records from higher latitudes need to be confirmed by more collections before they can be accepted: Køge Bugt, just south of Copenhagen (Stephensen, 1948); south of the Cape of Good Hope, 52°58′S, 22°58′E (Nierstrasz, 1918). Cymothoids probably do not occur in such cold waters.