Short communication First record of albinism in the deepwater black scabbard-fish Aphanopus carbo (Trichiuridae) off Madeira By J. Delgado, D. Carvalho, R. Sousa, S. Ferreira and M. J. Aveiro Direcc ¸a ˜o de Servic ¸ os de Investigac ¸a ˜o das Pescas (DSIP), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal Introduction The black scabbard-fish Aphanopus carbo Lowe, 1839, is a deep-water (circa 200–1700 m) benthopelagic species distrib- uted on both sides of the North-Atlantic, from the Denmark Strait to about 30°N (Froese and Pauly, 2007). Two pheno- typic traits characterizing this species are the absence of pelvic fins in adults (e.g. Aphanopus) and the naked skin, which is usually coppery-black with an iridescent tint (e.g. carbo) (Parin, 1986) (Fig. 1a). The Madeira longline fishery of black scabbard-fish is one of the oldest worldwide exploitations of a deep water resource dating back to at least the 19th century (Noronha and Sarmento, 1948). In the past 10 years an average of 3500 ton- nes of A. carbo was caught yearly in the fishery, corresponding to the capture of between 1 and 2 million of these fishes per year in this area of the Eastern-central Atlantic. This reports for the first time the occurrence of albinism in this deep-water fish. Materials and methods In December 2006, an A. carbo specimen was caught in the Madeiran longline black scabbard-fish fishery. This type of fishery operates with a drifting horizontal longline, armed with steel hooks baited with salted mackerel (Scomber japonicus), set in the water column between depths of 800–1200 m. The specimen was caught off the Madeira archipelago (Desertas island: 32°08¢N; 17°15¢W) and frozen. It was later identified according to Parin (1995) in the Madeira fisheries laboratory and photographed. Total length (TL), furcal length (FL), standard length (SL) and total weight (TW) were examined, the sex was determined and the sexual maturity stage assessed following Gordo et al., 2000. Morphometric and meristic characteristics (Nakamura and Parin, 1993; Parin, 1995) of the specimen were compared with 23 normal specimens of the same species randomly taken from commercial captures at the same time of year (winter). Results The material examined was an albino A. carbo adult female showing evidence of recent spawning. The specimen was slightly above the average size (except for weight) found in the 23 other specimens studied (Table 1). The morphometric and meristic characters analysed were within the ranges found in the normal specimens and corresponded to the morphotype of the species (Nakamura and Parin, 1993). Otolith (sagittae) examination showed that the specimen was 9 years old. The stomach was empty and there were anisakid nematods (Anisakis spp.) inside the abdominal cavity. This deep-water fish had a partial albino phenotype with hypomelanism on the entire surface of the body except for the eyes, which had normal pigmentation (Fig. 1b). Absence of pigmentation (melanin) was almost total in the fins. Dorsal fin spines and dorsal, pectoral and anal fin rays were mostly translucent with transparent fin membranes. Lack of pigmen- tation in the caudal fin covered about 80% of its surface. The head, trunk and tail showed a considerable reduction of pigmentation, presenting a white background with conspicu- ous remnants of the normal coloration in the form of irregular black melanin spots (sometimes in strings) and dusky areas on the tail. The inside of the mouth, the tongue, and the gill cavities, which in normal specimens are completely black, were mostly white. Conversely, the peritoneum was black. (a) (b) Fig. 1. Normal (a) and albino (b) specimens of Aphanopus carbo J. Appl. Ichthyol. 25 (2009), 483–484 Ó 2009 Direcc¸a˜o Regional de Pescas da Madiera Journal compilation Ó 2009 Blackwell Verlag, Berlin ISSN 0175–8659 Received: January 20, 2008 Accepted: July 4, 2008 doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0426.2009.01196.x U.S. Copyright Clearance Centre Code Statement: 0175–8659/2009/2504–0483$15.00/0