Alcock's slickhead

<em>Rouleina squamilatera</em>, Alcock's Slickhead, is a deep-sea saltwater fish of the family Alepocephalidae, the slickheads—a group of bathypelagic fishes recognized for their smooth, scaleless or finely scaled heads and dark, gelatinous bodies adapted to extreme ocean depths. This species reaches approximately 38 cm in length and has been recorded at depths of 677 to 1,150 meters, within the bathypelagic zone where conditions are cold, dark, and under intense hydrostatic pressure. Slickheads are generally slow-moving, energy-conserving predators or scavengers in the deep ocean, feeding on organic matter and invertebrates. The genus <em>Rouleina</em> is a mid-sized group within the Alepocephalidae. Details of habitat and range for this species remain limited in the ichthyological literature. <em>R. squamilatera</em> has not been evaluated by the IUCN. Deep-sea fishes of this family are important components of bathypelagic ecosystems, contributing to the biological pump that transfers organic carbon from surface waters to the deep ocean floor.