Zalieutes

Zalieutes batfishes have the head flattened so far that it is level with the disc, the disc can be rounded to triangular. The mouth is small, the illicium is short and rests in a small cavity which is underneath the conical Rostrum (anatomy) directed forwards with similar sized cones pointing diagonally forward on either side of it, this takes th form of a short horn in juveniles. The esca is triangular, with no lobes. The gill rakers are modified into long slender plates with a covering of teeth. They do not have a large spine at the lower rear angle of the operculum. The gill openings are small and they are located to the rear of the upper base of the pectoral fin. The dorsal and anal fins are small and located at the rear of body. The pectoral fins are limb like and they are clearly separated from the body. They have a long tail. The body is covered with small and large tubercles while the underside of tail is covered with prickles and two rows of conical scales.^[7] These fishes have maximum published total lengths of 15 cm (5.9 in) for Z. elater and 10 cm (3.9 in) for Z. mcgintyi.^[6]

Zalieutes batfishes are demersal fishes found off the coasts of the Americas. The roundel batfish (Z. elater) is found on soft substrates at depths between 20 and 115 m (66 and 377 ft) in the Eastern Pacific Ocean where it occurs from southern California and the Gulf of California south as far as northern Peru, it is also found off Cocos and Malpelo Islands.^[8] The tricorn batfish (Z. mcgintyi) is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean at depths between 90 and 660 m (300 and 2,170 ft). although it is typically found no deeper than 180 m (590 ft). Its range extends from Florida to French Guiana, it has been recorded as far north as North Carolina and it may be present in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, but its presence in these areas is uncertain.^[9]