Bathysaurus, the deepsea lizardfish, joins Synodus, the inshore lizardfish, in the LRT
No surprises here.
Except maybe those numerous, long, multi-layered teeth on Bathysaurus (Fig 1) – which make ideal sand sifters at the bottom of the sunless sea.
As you can tell, DGS colors were helpful here as elsewhere.
Figure 1. Bathysaurus, the deep sea lizardfish diagram and DGS colored photo. Compare to figure 2.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-93625″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg” alt=”Figure 1. Bathysaurus, the deep sea lizardfish diagram and DGS colored photo. Compare to figure 2.” width=”584″ height=”515″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg?w=584&h=515 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg?w=150&h=132 150w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg?w=300&h=265 300w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/bathysaurus-skull588-1.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 1. Bathysaurus, the deep sea lizardfish diagram and DGS colored photo. Compare to figure 2.
By contrast,
inshore lizardfish (genus Synodus, Fig 2) hide in the sand, then leap out to chase prey. Synodus has been an odd LRT member for several years. Again, its those teeth.
Figure 2. Synodus is the inshore lizardfish. Compare to figure 1.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg?w=194″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-93619″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg” alt=”Figure 2. Synodus is the inshore lizardfish. Compare to figure 1.” width=”584″ height=”905″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg?w=584&h=905 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg?w=97&h=150 97w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg?w=194&h=300 194w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/synodus_foetens_skull588.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 2. Synodus is the inshore lizardfish. Compare to figure 1.
Synodus foetens
(Linneaus 1766; 40cm up to a rarely up to 50cm) is the inshore lizardfish. This ambush predator has a pointed snout that extends more than an orbit length and it attacks small benthic crustaceans. Reproduction is external. Propulsion comes from long sinuous sweeps of the tail. Here Synodus nests with the king mackeral (Scomberomorus) in the tuna/mackerel clade.
Bathysaurus ferox
(Günther 1878, 78cm in length) is the extant deepsea lizardfish.
From Wikipedia – Deepsea Lizardfish
“The large, well developed eyes, with large pupils, are evidence of the importance of vision for prey detection. Although residual sunlight does not penetrate the depths inhabited by deep-sea lizardfish, their eyes aid in detecting distinct sources bioluminescent light.”
“Deepsea lizardfish are one of the world’s deepest living apex predators, and will not hesitate to eat anything they meet, including their own kind.
“Most of the time, the deepsea lizardfish maintains a motionless stance on the substrate, with head and fore-body raised, waiting for prey. Being well equipped to pursue and devour whole prey, it captures it by lunging forward in a sudden rapid burst, accompanied by a snap of its trap-like jaws.”
“Deepsea lizardfish are hermaphrodites, bearing both male and female sex organs, thought to be an adaptation to low population densities. Mature gonads found in samples from November to January off the coast of Virginia show that their reproduction is synchronous, a means of maximizing breeding population densities without increasing the size of the feeding population. Mean fecundity rates of around 32,000 ova per fish were observed for eight specimens. Not much is known about their mating habits; however, larval deepsea lizardfish have been recorded at the surface of the ocean.”
Figure 1. Bathypterois, the deep sea tripod fish, shown with diagram of jaws and palate from Sulak 2006, then colored and matched to the in vivo specimen.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif?w=300″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-42301″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif” alt=”Figure 1. Bathypterois, the deep sea tripod fish, shown with diagram of jaws and palate from Sulak 2006, then colored and matched to the in vivo specimen.” width=”584″ height=”388″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif?w=584&h=388 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif?w=150&h=100 150w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif?w=300&h=199 300w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/tripod_fish_bones588.gif 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 3. Bathypterois, the deep sea tripod fish, shown with diagram of jaws and palate from Sulak 2006, then colored and matched to the in vivo specimen.
Tripod fish
(Fig 3) known from too few skull pieces to score in the LRT, are considered to be related.
Figure 4. The extant blunt-nosed lizardfish, Trachinocephalus.
” data-medium-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg?w=236″ data-large-file=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg?w=584″ class=”size-full wp-image-93628″ src=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg” alt=”Figure 4. The extant blunt-nosed lizardfish, Trachinocephalus.” width=”584″ height=”744″ srcset=”https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg?w=584&h=744 584w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg?w=118&h=150 118w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg?w=236&h=300 236w, https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/trachinocephalus588.jpg 588w” sizes=”(max-width: 584px) 100vw, 584px” />
Figure 4. The extant blunt-nosed lizardfish, Trachinocephalus. DGS colors updated here.
Short-snouted Trarchinocephalus
(Fig 4) is also related. The DGS colors here follow patterns set in the Devonian by the placoderm, Coccosteus, the spiny shark, Cheiracanthus, and the extant walking catfish, Clarias, – distinct from the clade of fish that gave rise to tetrapods.
References
Günther A 1878. Preliminary notices of deep-sea fishes collected during the voyage of H. M. S. Challenger. Annals and Magazine of Natural History (Series 5). 2 (nos 7/8/9)(art. 2/22/28): 17-28, 179-187, 248-251.
Linneaus C von 1766. Systema naturæ per regna tria naturæ, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio duodecima, reformata. pp. 1–532. Holmiæ. (Salvius).
Sulak K, Wenner CA, Sedberry GR and Guelpen LV 1985. The life history and systematics of deep-sea lizard fishes, genus Bathysaurus (Synodontidae). Canadian Journal of Zoology. 63 (3): 623–642. doi:10.1139/z85-091
wiki/Inshore_lizardfish – Synoduswiki/Inshore_lizardfish – Synodus
wiki/Deepsea_lizardfish
Source: https://pterosaurheresies.wordpress.com/2025/07/11/bathysaurus-the-deepsea-lizardfish-joins-synodus-the-inshore-lizardfish-in-the-lrt/
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