Halicmetus
genus of fishes
Halicmetus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Ogcocephalidae, the deep sea batfishes. The fishes in this genus are widely distributed in the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans.
Taxonomy
Halicmetus was first proposed as a monospecific genus in 1891 by the British physician and zoologist Alfred William Alcock when he described Halicmetus ruber. The type locality of H. ruber was given as the Andaman Sea at 11°31'40"N, 92°46'06"E at a depth of 188–220 fathoms (1,128–1,320 ft; 344–402 m), the Investigator station 115. This genus is classified within the "Indo-Pacific clade" of the family Ogcocephalidae. The family Ogcocephalidae is classified in the monotypic suborder Ogcocephaloidei within the order Lophiiformes, the anglerfishes in the 5th edition of Fishes of the World.
Species
Halicmetus contains eight recognised species:
Halicmetus drypus Ho & Last, 2018 (Pink shortnose seabat)
Halicmetus granulosus Ho, 2022
Halicmetus niger Ho, Endo & Sakamaki, 2008 (Black shortnose seabat)
Halicmetus marmoratus Weber, 1913 (Marbled shortnose seabat)
Halicmetus odysseus Prokofiev, 2020
Halicmetus reticulatus H. M. Smith & Radcliffe, 1912 (Marbled seabat or reticulated shortnose seabat)
Halicmetus ruber Alcock, 1891 (Red shortnose seabat)
Halicmetus westraliensis Ho & Last, 2018 (West Australian shortnose seabat)
Characteristics
Halicmetus seabats are characterised by their very flattened heads with the front edge of the head being either broadly rounded or squared off. The snout extends out over the small mouth and the front edge of the disc of the head. The dorsal fin is either tiny or is not present. The whole body is covered in scales developed into small bucklers and small tubercles.
The public source identifies “Halicmetus” as genus of fishes. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Halicmetus, genus and fishes.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Halicmetus”, the useful work is to connect “genus of fishes” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 18, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1032914. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1891, 2018, 2022 and 2008.
Scientific names, classifications and consensus can change while older terminology persists in catalogues and historical literature. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.
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This entry incorporates text from “Halicmetus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.