EASTERNMOST RECORD OF THE LANCET FISH, NOTOSCOPELUS KROYERI (ACTINOPTERYGII: MYCTOPHIFORMES: MYCTOPHIDAE), IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA

One specimen of lancet fish, Notoscopelus kroyeri (Malm, 1861), was collected in March 2007 by commercial bottom trawl in the Aegean Sea. This record consists the easternmost record of lancet fish in the Mediterranean Sea. Morphometric and meristic characteristics of this species are given.

. Museum records of Notoscopelus kroyeri in the Mediterranean Sea (■) by Froese and Pauly (2009), and sampling location in the present study ( ) N. kroyeri has been reported so far from western North Atlantic (Nafpaktitis et al. 1977) and the Flemish Cap (an area of shallow waters in the North Atlantic Ocean centred roughly at 47°N, 45°W or about 350 miles (560 km) east of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador) (Bañón et al. 2001). Although Hulley (1984) reported that distribution area of N. kroyeri is restricted to the northern Atlantic, in the east-ern sector between 37°N and the Arctic Circle and in the western sector between 40°N and 60°N, this species is given such records based on museum collections also in the western Mediterranean Sea (e.g., Malta, West Italy, Southern Crete) (Froese and Pauly 2009) (Fig. 1). N. kroyeri was included in the list of Mediterranean fish biodiversity by Quignard and Tomasini (2000) who did not indi-Keskin C. and Eryilmaz 80

Characteristics
Present study Nafpaktitis et al. 1977Hulley 1984  cate where it was found in this sea nor did they give its morphomeristic characters. Considering to the above-mentioned knowledge on the distribution areas of N. kroyeri, this paper represents the easternmost record of this species in the Mediterranean Sea. A 140 mm (TL) specimen was caught between 40°17′N and 25°58′E, and between 40°19′N and 26°06′E in the North Aegean Sea in March 2007 during the day by commercial bottom trawl, at depth between 475 m and 350 m (Fig. 1). The specimen was fixed and preserved in 5% formalin solution and deposited in the Istanbul University, Science Faculty, Hydrobiology Museum, Istanbul (IUSHM 37920-255) (Fig. 2). Measurements were made with dial callipers and recorded to 0.1 mm. The species name was attributed following Eschmeyer (1998).
Diagnostic characters of the specimen were measured following Nafpaktitis et al. (1977) and Hulley (1984). The diagnostic characters of the lancet fish in this study and in accordance with those observed in other areas are given in Table 1.
The description of the captured specimen is as follows: Head and body compressed, eyes large and lateral; mouth large, jaws extending more than one eye diameter behind posterior margin of orbit; AO series divided into AOa and AOp, the last AOa raised, AOp behind base of anal fine; two Pol, horizontally arranged at lateral line; VO 5; SAO 3; VO 5 , SAO 1 and SAO 2 equidistant and nearly in a straight line. PVO 2, PVO 2 well above level of upper end of base of pectoral fin; last Prc below level of lateral line. Origin of dorsal fin slightly in advance of ventral fin base. Origin of anal fin behind of middle of dorsal fin base. Pectoral fins short, not reaching the bases of ventral fins; ventral fins extending to anus. Adipose fin origin slightly in advance of end of anal fin base.
All counts and measurements agree with descriptions of N. kroyeri given by Nafpaktitis et al. (1977) and Hulley (1984). N. kroyeri can be distinguished from other Atlanto-Mediterranean co-generic species of the genus Notoscopelus (N. caudispinosus, N. resplendens, and N. elongatus) by the large number of gillrakers (26-30; see Table 1), as compared to 25 or less in these species; while from N. bolini, it can be separated by having 21-22 dorsal fin rays as compared to 23-26.