Saturday, July 2, 2016

[Ichthyology • 2016] Diplodus levantinus • A New Species of Sea Bream (Teleostei: Sparidae) from the southeastern Mediterranean Sea of Israel, with A Checklist and A Key to the Species of the Diplodus sargus Species Group


Generalised body colour patterns of the species of the Diplodus sargus group 
Diplodus levantinus
Fricke, Golani & Appelbaum-Golani, 2016


The sea bream Diplodus levantinus n. sp. is described from off the coasts of Israel in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, where it replaces Diplodus sargus (Linnaeus, 1758). The new species is characterized by 11-12 spines and 10-16 soft rays in the dorsal fin, 3 spines and 11-13 soft rays in the anal fin, 15-17 pectoral fin rays, 6-9 + 8-12 gill rakers on the first gill arch, upper and lower jaws with a single row of 4 incisors on each side, followed by a total of 16-19 molariform teeth in the upper jaw and 12-14 molariform teeth in the lower jaw, with the molariforms of the upper jaw separated from the incisors by a wide, toothless gap, and the sides of the body in adults with 8 vertical bars of equal width which are present even in large adults, followed by a broad bar on the caudal peduncle which usually nearly reaches the ventral margin of the caudal peduncle. An updated checklist of the species of the genus Diplodus, and a key to species of the Diplodus sargus species group from the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea, are presented.

Keywords: taxonomy; fishes; new species; Mediterranean Sea; neotype designation; checklist; key



TAXONOMY
Diplodus levantinus new species (Figs 1-4, Table 1)

Sargus Rondeletii (non Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830): Steinitz 1927: 338 (Haifa, Israel).
Sargus sargus (non Linnaeus, 1758): Liebman 1934: 323 (Palestine/ Israel; most frequent and abundant species).
Diplodus sargus (non Linnaeus, 1758): Hornell 1935: 83 (Palestine/ Israel). Bodenheimer 1937: 273 (Palestine/Israel). Ben-Tuvia 1953a: 23 (Israel, common along the shores). Ben-Tuvia 1953b: 439 (off Caesarea, Israel). Ben-Tuvia 1971: 32 (Israel). Golani 1996: 39 (Israel). Golani 2005: 43 (Israel). Golani 2006: 182- 183 (Israel). Golani et al. 2006: 163.
Sargus rondeletti (non Valenciennes in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830): Bodenheimer 1935: 462 (Palestine/Israel).
Diplodus X (probably a hybrid of Diplodus annularis × Diplodus sargus): Paz et al. 1974: 126. Paz 1975: 57-61 (Tantura Bay, Israel).
Diplodus sargus sargus (non Linnaeus, 1758): Whitehead et al. 1986: 894-895 (part: Israel).

Holotype: HUJ 20535, 184.1 mm SL, eastern Mediterranean Sea, Israel, off Jaffa, ca. 32°03’N 34°45’E, collected by local fishermen, 30 Oct. 2015. 

Diagnosis. A species of Diplodus Rafinesque 1810 with 11-12 spines and 10-16 soft rays in the dorsal fin, 3 spines and 11-13 soft rays in the anal fin, 15-17 pectoral fin rays, 6-9 + 8-12 gill rakers on the first gill arch, upper and lower jaws with a single row of 4 incisors on each side, followed by a total of 16-19 molariform teeth in the upper jaw and 12-14 molariform teeth in the lower jaw, with the molariforms of the upper jaw separated from the incisors by a wide gap, and the sides of the body
in adults with 8 vertical bars of equal width, which are present even in large adults, followed by a broad bar on caudal peduncle, which usually nearly reaches the ventral margin of the caudal peduncle.

Etymology. The name of the new species, levantinus, refers to the Levant, a historical name for the coasts of the eastern Mediterranean.

Distribution and habitat. Known only from the coast of Israel, eastern Mediterranean Sea, between Haifa and Jaffa (Fig. 5). The species is found from shallow water to 50 m depth, usually on sand bottom near rocks; juveniles are found above sandy substrate near rocks at depths of 0.2-2 m.

Fig. 7. – Generalised body colour patterns of the species of the Diplodus sargus group; large adults, medium adults and small adults.
Diplodus sargus: A, MNHN A-8098 (255 mm SL), France, Marseille; B, MNHN 1961-0894 (192 mm SL), Monaco, 1961. C, MNHN uncat. (92 mm SL), France, Villefranche-sur-Mer.
 Diplodus capensis: D, MNHN A-8096 (315 mm SL), South Africa, Cape Province. E, MRAC 97894 (215 mm SL), South Africa, Elephant Bay. F, SAIAB 1638 (109 mm SL), South Africa, Cape Province.
 Diplodus cadenati: G, BMNH 1895.5.28.24 (310 mm SL), Madeira. H, BMNH 1858.8.3.7-8 (182 mm SL), Canary Islands. I, IFAN 867 (89 mm SL), Senegal, Dakar.
Diplodus levantinus n. sp.: J, HUJ 7462 (281 mm SL, paratype), Israel, Caesarea, 12 Aug. 1959. K, HUJ 2134 (176.3 mm SL, paratype), Israel, Wadi Hadera, 24 Oct. 1955. L, HUJ 20257 (spec. 1, 95 mm SL, paratype), Israel, Sdot Yam, 21 Jan. 2014.
Diplodus lineatus: M, HUJ 20368 (spec. 1, 222 mm SL), Cape Verde Islands, Boa Vista, 9 Sept. 2014. N, HUJ 20369 (spec. 2, 177 mm SL), Cape Verde Islands, Boa Vista, 9 Sept. 2014. O, MNHN 1971-0002 (98 mm SL), Cape Verde Islands. This figure follows Paz (1975: 47), but is corrected and updated; figures A-I and O based on Paz (1975: Fig. 23).
 Scales indicate 20 mm. | SciMar.icm.CSIC.es/SciMar 

Ronald Fricke, Daniel Golani and Brenda Appelbaum-Golani. 2016. Diplodus levantinus (Teleostei: Sparidae), A New Species of Sea Bream from the southeastern Mediterranean Sea of Israel, with A Checklist and A Key to the Species of the Diplodus sargus Species Group. SCIENTIA MARINA. 80(3); DOI:  10.3989/scimar.04414.22B



Diplodus levantinus (Teleostei: Sparidae), una nueva especie de sargo del Mediterráneo sudeste frente a Israel, con una lista de especies y una clave de clasificación de las especies del grupo Diplodus sargus 

Resumen: El sargo levantino Diplodus levantinus n. sp. se describe a partir de ejemplares de las costas de Israel, en el Mediterráneo oriental, donde reemplaza a Diplodus sargus (Linnaeus, 1758). La nueva especie se caracteriza por: 11-12 espinas y 10-16 radios blandos en la aleta dorsal, 3 espinas y 11-13 radios blandos en la aleta anal, 15-17 radios en las pectorales, 6-9 + 8-12 branquispinas en el primer arco branquial; las mandíbulas superior e inferior con una sola fila de 4 incisivos en cada lado, seguidos por un total de 16-19 molares en la mandíbula superior y 12-14 molares en la mandíbula inferior, con los molares de la mandíbula superior separados de los incisivos por una gran distancia sin dientes; los lados del cuerpo, en los adultos, con 8 bandas verticales de igual anchura, presentes incluso en adultos de gran tamaño, seguidas de una amplia banda en el pedúnculo caudal que, por lo general, casi alcanza el margen ventral del pedúnculo caudal. Se diferencia principalmente de D. sargus por el menor número de dientes molares en las mandíbulas superior e inferior, y por la amplia separación, sin dientes, entre molares e incisivos de la mandíbula superior. Se presenta una lista actualizada de las especies del género Diplodus y una clave para las especies del grupo de especies Diplodus sargus del Atlántico este y el Mediterráneo. 

Palabras clave: taxonomía; peces; nueva especie; mar Mediterráneo; designación de neotipo; lista de especies; clave