This file contains data on numerical abundance of early stages of fishes collected in April 2015 across the tropical and equatorial Atlantic. Eleven stations were sampled both day and night, from the oligotrophic region close to the Brazilian coast to the more productive region off the western African coast. Samples were obtained by means of a Multiple Opening/Closing Net and Environmental Sensing System (Wiebe et al., 1985), MOCNESS-1 m2 net, from 800 m to the surface, discriminating 8 layers of the water column. Samples were fixed on board and stored in 5% buffered formalin and seawater for later sorting and identification in the laboratory. These data were obtained within the project: "Migrants and Active Flux In the Atlantic Ocean, financed by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación CTM2012-39587-C04.

When specimens were damaged and identification could not be made with absolute certainty, a “?” was included in front of the species name.Specimens of Diaphus that could not be identified to species level, were ascribed to one of the two basic morphotypes described by Moser and Ahlstrom (1974): The slender morphotype, “Diaphus sp. SM” (slender body, small head, and persistent series of melanophores on the ventral tail), which develop a suborbital photophore as adults, and the deep morphotype, “Diaphus sp. DM” (with a thick body, bulbous head, and one melanophore on the ventral tail), that do not develop a suborbital photophore as adults.