[Ichthyology • 2025] Upeneus alama & U. brevianalis • Two New Goatfish Species of the Upeneus sulphureus Species Group (Syngnathiformes: Mullidae), with a Redescription of U. sulphureus Cuvier, 1829 and a Review of Barbel Length in the Genus

(A, B) Upeneus alama: Philippines, Manila Bay, Cavite;

(C) U. brevianalis, Thailand, Andaman Sea, Phuket; 

(D) U. doriae: Persian/Arabian Gulf, Bahrain;

(F, G) U. nigromarginatus: (F) Philippines, Negros Oriental, Dumaguete Citz; (G) Philippines, Panay Island, Tigbauan market near Iloilo City. 

Upeneus sulphureus Cuvier, 1829. (A, B) Thailand, Gulf of Thailand, Prachuab Khiri Khan Province; (C) Philippines, Metro Manila; (D) Vietnam, Ha Long Bay.  

in Uiblein, Motomura, Møller, Sabaj, Boonphienphol, Hoang et Parkinson, 2025. 

DOI: doi.org/10.1643/i2024094 

 Abstract 

For the goatfish genus Upeneus, the new sulphureus-species group is established, which includes five species, U. doriae, U. nigromarginatus, U. sulphureus, and the two new species, U. alama and U. brevianalis. This taxonomic group differs from the other seven species groups and four ungrouped species of this genus in the following combination of characters: 8 dorsal-fin spines, 14–17 pectoral-fin rays, 25–33 total gill rakers, 32–37 lateral-line scales, and lack of bars on caudal fin. Upeneus sulphureus is redescribed based on examination of a large set of morphometric, meristic, and color characters in 211 specimens, which revealed a bimodal distribution in barbel length prompting separation into short- and long-barbel morphs. This bimodality was neither sex-, size-, nor population-dependent, but found in co-occurring individuals of U. sulphureus in many areas of its distributional range from East Africa to Japan. The two new species differ from all other congeners primarily in U. alama, new species, having longer barbels (28–30% SL) and U. brevianalis, new species, having a shorter and shallower anal fin (8.1 and 12% SL, respectively) as well as a broad, dark-brown vertical band along the anterior third of the first dorsal fin. For U. nigromarginatus, new records from Papua New Guinea, Indonesia (West Papua), and three areas of the Philippines north of Mindanao are reported. For U. doriae, U. sulphureus, and Mulloides pinnivittatus, the latter a junior synonym of U. sulphureus, lectotypes are designated. An updated account for the genus Upeneus is provided. The barbel-length data of all 53 species of Upeneus are reviewed, and the finding of a wide range combined with a distinct dimorphism of this character in U. sulphureus is discussed.

Upeneus sulphureus.
 (A, B) KAUM-I.33094, SBM, 119 mm SL, Thailand, Gulf of Thailand, Prachuab Khiri Khan Province (H. Motomura); (C) USNM 403094, SBM, 105 mm SL, Philippines, Metro Manila (copyright J. T. Williams); (D) KAUM-I.67460, SBM, 90 mm SL, Vietnam, Ha Long Bay (H. Motomura);
(E, F): SAIAB 82237, LBM, 106 mm SL, Mozambique (E: copyright O. Alvheim, F: copyright P. C. Heemstra);
(G, H) KAUM-I.57209, LBM, 91 mm SL, Philippines, Panay Island, Iloilo City (H. Motomura); (I, J) KAUM-I.123161, LBM, 99 mm SL, Japan, Kagoshima, NE of Matsushima (H. Motomura). 

(A, B) Upeneus alama: (A) USNM 466258, HT, 117 mm SL, Philippines, Manila Bay, Cavite (copyright D. Pitassy); (B) USNM 466258, PT, 125 mm SL, same locality (copyright D. Pitassy);
(C) U. brevianalis, ZMUC P49375, HT, 137 mm SL, Thailand, Andaman Sea, Phuket (F. Uiblein); 
(D, E) U. doriae: (D): USNM FIN 31104 (unvouchered photograph), 106 mm SL, Persian/Arabian Gulf, Bahrain (copyright J. E. Randall); (E) ZMB 7056, LT, 104 mm SL, Iran, Persian/Arabian Gulf, Bandar Abbas (copyright E. Aßel);
(F, G, H) U. nigromarginatus: (F) USNM 403319, 159 mm SL, Philippines, Negros Oriental, Dumaguete Citz (copyright J. T. Williams); (G) VNMN-I 1986 (unvouchered image), ca. 70 mm SL, Philippines, Panay Island, Tigbauan market near Iloilo City (F. Uiblein); (H) AMS I.18495-001, 88 mm SL, Papua New Guinea, Madang Province, Broken Water Bay (K. Parkinson).  

Upeneus alama Uiblein and Motomura, new species

Cavite Goatfish

  

Diagnosis.—Dorsal fins VIII + 9; pectoral fins 16; gill rakers 8–9 upper + 20–22 lower = 28–31 total; lateral-line scales 33; body moderately deep; measurements as % SL: body depth at anal-fin origin 25–28; maximum head depth 26; head depth through eye 22; suborbital depth 14; head length 34; snout length 13; postorbital length 14; upper-jaw length 15; barbel length 28–30; barbel width 1.6–1.7; caudal-peduncle length 21–22; second dorsal-fin base length 14; caudal-fin length 28–32; length of anal-fin base 9.8–9.9; anal-fin height 15–17; pelvic-fin length 20; pectoral-fin length 28; pectoral-fin width 5.5–5.9; first dorsal-fin height 24–25; first two or three long dorsal-fin spines protruding; second dorsal-fin height 17; caudal fin without bars; first dorsal fin with black tip, retained in preservative; preserved fish with silvery-whitish head, pale brown body ventrally and dark brown dorsally; fins except for first dorsal-fin tip pale brown, partly hyaline; barbels very long, pale.

Etymology.—The new species name “alama” is used as a noun in apposition and honors the late Mr. Ulysses Banga Alama (1959–2023), who was employed at the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, Miagao, Iloilo, Philippines, and manager of the UPVM fish collection, to commemorate his contributions to marine ichthyology.

Upeneus brevianalis Uiblein and Boonphienphol, new species

 Phuket Goatfish

 

Diagnosis.—Dorsal fins VIII + 9; pectoral fins 16; gill rakers 8 upper + 20 lower = 28 total; lateral-line scales 31–32; body moderately deep; measurements as % SL: body depth at anal-fin origin 23; maximum head depth 27; head depth through eye 21; suborbital depth 14; head length 33; snout length 13; postorbital length 14; upper-jaw length 14; barbel length 20; barbel width 1.5; caudal-peduncle length 19; second dorsal-fin base length 15; caudal-fin length 31; length of anal-fin base 8.1; anal-fin height 12; pelvic-fin length 20; pectoral-fin length 26; pectoral-fin width 6.0; first dorsal-fin height 23, first five long dorsal-fin spines slightly protruding; second dorsal-fin height 17; caudal fin without bars; anterior third of first dorsal fin forming a broad, dark-brown vertically oriented band, becoming slightly wider dorsally; head and body pale brown to brown, belly lighter; paired and anal fins pale hyaline; barbels pale to pale brown.

Etymology.—The new species name “brevianalis” refers to the short anal fin, an important diagnostic character of this species.

Franz Uiblein, Hiroyuki Motomura, Peter R. Møller, Mark Sabaj, Supasit Boonphienphol, Tuan A. Hoang and Kerryn Parkinson. 2025. Two New Goatfish Species of the Upeneus sulphureus Species Group (Mullidae), with a Redescription of U. sulphureus Cuvier, 1829 and a Review of Barbel Length in the Genus. Ichthyology & Herpetology. 113(3); 453-486. DOI: doi.org/10.1643/i2024094 (22 August 2025)  

 

[Ichthyology • 2019] Upeneus caudofasciatus, U. gubal & U. heterospinus • Three New Goatfishes of the Genus Upeneus (Mullidae) from the Indo-Pacific, with A Redescription of Colour Patterns in U. margarethae

Upeneus heterospinus Uiblein & Pavlov

in Uiblein, Gledhill, Pavlov, Hoang & Shaheen, 2019.

 DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4683.2.1

Abstract 

For the goatfish genus Upeneus Cuvier 1829 (Mullidae), a new taxonomic species group called the “margarethae group” is established which can be distinguished from the six species of the most similar “tragula group” by a combination of the following characteristics: absence of dark pigmentation in the area of the first dorsal-fin tip, 21–25 total gill rakers and 28–30 lateral-line scales. Initially, three recently-described species have been included in the margarethae group: Upeneus margarethae Uiblein & Heemstra, 2010, known from the Indian Ocean including the Red Sea and from the Arafura Sea (W Pacific), U. mouthami Randall & Kulbicki, 2006, from New Caledonia and Vanuatu (W Pacific), and U. randalli Uiblein & Heemstra, 2011, from the Arabian/Persian Gulf and the inner Gulf of Oman (NW Indian Ocean). The present taxonomic review of the margarethae group analyses a large data set of 41 morphometric, 10 meristic and many colour characters obtained from 279 preserved goatfish specimens and 166 fresh-colour photos (plus a fresh-colour drawing). For the nominal species of the group, U. margarethae, a redescription of the colour patterns is provided and new records for Myanmar, Andaman Sea (NE Indian Ocean) and the Gulf of Carpentaria, N Australia (W Pacific), are reported. Three new species are described: Upeneus caudofasciatus n. sp. from the area of the Great Barrier Reef to Torres Strait off NE Australia (Coral Sea, W Pacific), U. gubal n. sp. from the S Gulf of Suez (Northern Red Sea), and U. heterospinus n. sp. from S Indonesia to Singapore, the Gulf of Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, China, Taiwan and Japan (W Pacific). A comprehensive alpha-taxonomic approach is adopted, considering population differences as well as intraspecific sizerelated variation in morphology and colour patterns by splitting the data set into two size classes, adults (≥ 65 mm SL) and smaller subadults. Inter- and intraspecific comparisons include statistical analyses for species and population with sufficiently large samples sizes (n ≥ 20). Colour-pattern characterization and analysis are based on photos of recently collected and deceased fish (partly associated with voucher specimens), photos obtained from active or resting fishes in situ or in a tank, and inspection of pigmentation patterns retained in preserved specimens. Species differences are elaborated under consideration of distribution patterns and the characteristics found in the closest-most population of widely distributed species such as U. margarethae, resulting in clear and consistent distinction among the six species in single or in a combination of several characteristics. Comparisons among size classes revealed species-specific patterns in morphometric, meristic and colour changes with increasing size. One species, U. heterospinus n. sp., has seven or eight spines in the dorsal fin which occur in balanced ratio across populations. This is a unique characteristic for Upeneus species which usually have either seven or eight dorsal-fin spines, respectively. The best distinction of Upeneus heterospinus n. sp. from all other congeners is reached by combined examination of dorsal-fin spines with several other characters such as barbel colour, presence of a mid-lateral body stripe, pigmentation patterns (partly retained also in preserved fish), gillraker and pectoral-fin ray numbers, and body-shape variables. The high degree of overall morphological differentation among the three most common species U. caudofasciatus n. sp., U. heterospinus n. sp. and U. margarethae, as revealed by the statistical comparisons, strongly contrasts with a still signficant, but much lower degree of differentiation among populations. The diagnostic characteristics of the margarethae group are updated and the importance to use the results of this taxonomic review in ongoing fisheries-related and ecological research is emphasized. Requirements for future taxonomic research featuring the stunning diversity of the goatfish genus Upeneus are also discussed.

Keywords: Pisces, margarethae species group, meristic characters, body shape, colour patterns, comprehensive alpha taxonomy

Upeneus margarethae Uiblein & Heemstra, 2010

Margaretha’s goatfish

FIGURE 7. (A–C) Upeneus caudofasciatus n. sp. ; (A) HT, CSIRO H 6717-02, 116 mm SL, NE Australia, Great Barrier Reef, N of Rockingham Bay (D.C. Gledhill); (B) PT, CSIRO H 7212-01, 95 mm SL, same region, SE of Cairns (D.C. Gledhill); (C) CSIRO H 3637-10, 69 mm SL, Torres Strait W of Thursday Island, (G. Yearsley);
 (D) U. gubal n. sp., 87 mm SL, Red Sea, S Gulf Of Suez (F. Uiblein);
(E–G) U. mouthami; (E) HT, BPBM 33858, 70 mm SL, Chesterfield Bank, Coral Sea (J.E. Randall); (F) MNHN 2008-1433, 49 mm SL, Vanuatu, off Malo Island, Bruat Channel (C. Ferrara); (G) same specimen preserved (F. Uiblein).

Upeneus caudofasciatus n. sp. Uiblein & Gledhill

Tailbar goatfish

Etymology. The name refers to the occurrence of oblique conspicuous bars which cross both caudal-fin lobes entirely.

 Distribution, habitat and size. SW Pacific, NE Australia, Queensland, from W of Thursday Island and S of Daru Island, Torres Strait to NE of Gladstone, Great Barrier Reef; maximum depth 60 m, commonly trawled above soft bottoms at between 15 and 40 m; maximum size 12.5 cm SL.

Intraspecific comparisons. Subadults differ from adults in having a slightly longer head, shallower pelvic-fin depth and longer pelvic fins (Tables 2, 9; Figure 8); they differ in having fewer bars on the caudal fin (only preserved fish could be compared; Tables 2, 9); dark pigmentation is more often found in preserved subadults than in preserved adults (Tables 2, 9; see also preserved colour description above).

Remarks. Because of the relatively small distribution area of the species and low numbers of specimens available from the most distant localities, no quantitative population comparisons could be conducted. In two of the 55 studied specimens the tiny first-dorsal fin spine is overgrown with skin or very small and hence difficult to detect. Though this species appears to be rather common on shallow soft bottoms near coral reefs, we could not find any in-situ fresh-colour photo documentation.

Upeneus gubal n. sp. Uiblein

Gubal goatfish

Diagnosis. Dorsal fins VIII + 9, the first spine minute; pectoral fins 15; gill rakers 6 + 19 = 25; lateral-line scales 28–29; measurements in % SL: body depth at first dorsal-fin origin 24; body depth at anus 21; caudal-peduncle depth 11; caudal-peduncle width 3.3; maximum head depth 20; head depth through eye 16; suborbital depth 9.0; interorbital length 8.2; head length 29; snout length 11; postorbital length 11; orbit length 7.4; upper-jaw length 11; barbel length 19; interdorsal distance 16; caudal-peduncle length 24; caudal-fin length 31; anal-fin height 19; pelvic-fin length 22; pectoral-fin length 22; pectoral-fin width 4.8; first dorsal-fin height 22; second dorsal-fin height 19; preserved colour pale brown.

Etymology. Named after the type locality which is situated close to Gubal Island and in the Strait of Gubal at the southern entrance to the Gulf of Suez, Northern Red Sea. The name “gubal” is used as a noun in apposition.

Distribution, habitat and size. Single locality off Gubal Island, S Gulf of Suez, Northern Red Sea; fish caught by trawling at 70 m depth, most probably on sandy or muddy bottom; size of the specimen is 8.7 cm SL.

Remarks. Fresh colour of Upeneus gubal n. sp. is yet unknown, but the available morphological evidence strongly suggests its inclusion in the margarethae group (see also the Interspecific comparisons section further below). The single type specimen was collected together with a specimen of Upeneus moluccensis (Bleeker, 1855) (registered as MNHN 2011-0093). The latter did not show any remains of dark pigmentation e.g. of first dorsal-fin tip and oblique bars on upper caudal-fin lobe as indicated to be diagnostic for preserved conspecifics (Uiblein & Heemstra 2010). The single known locality of U. gubal n. sp. in the S Gulf of Suez is about 1100 km north of the northernmost currently known occurrence of U. margarethae off Ibn Abbas Island, S coast of Sudan.

Figure 10. Upeneus heterospinus n. sp.;
 (A) HIFIRE 58231, 123 mm SL, N of Hon Tre Island, Nha Trang, South-central Vietnam, live tank photo (F. Uiblein); (B) subadult or small adult specimen (ca. 6–7 cm SL) encountered during dive off Phu Quoc, S Vietnam (F. Uiblein); (C) adult amongst three U. asymmetricus (with red oblique head bars), Chocolate Point, Malapascua Island, Chocolate Island, Philippines, 12 m depth; (D) adult, Yao Island, Bantayan Islands, Philippines; (E) adult, resting, Nocnocan Island, Bohol, Philippines (C-E: P. & G. Poppe - www.poppe-images.com)

Upeneus heterospinus n. sp. Uiblein & Pavlov

Varied-spine goatfish

Etymology. The name refers to the variable number of 7 or 8 dorsal-fin spines in this species, which is in contrast to most other goatfish species and all other Indo-Pacific congeners which have either 7 or 8 dorsal-fin spines.

 Distribution, habitat and size. W Pacific, from border to EIO in S Indonesia to Singapore, Gulf of Thailand, Vietnam, Central Philippines, South China, Taiwan, and S Japan; 6–24 m depth, sandy or muddy bottoms; maximum size 16 cm SL.

Intraspecific comparisons. To ensure that the dimorphic expression of seven and eight dorsal-fin spines in U. heterospinus n. sp. is indeed a single-species characteristic, as is unusual in goatfishes, the two morphs were compared using the entire set of studied characters. As was expected, no differences could be discovered in any single character (Table 8), nor in any combinations of characters or in statistical comparisons of morphometric, meristic and colour characters.

...

Remarks. Upeneus heterospinus n. sp. has been reported from many areas using various names and most recently as U. spottocaudalis from Japan (Bandai et al. 2018). From Vietnam, where it is a common species that is frequently encountered in fish markets, biological data have been recently collected and published using preliminary identification information (Emel’yanova & Pavlov 2014; Pavlov & Emel’yanova 2016).

 Upeneus mouthami Randall & Kulbicki, 2006

Mou Tham’s goatfish

Distribution, habitat and size. Coral Sea, New Caledonia, Chesterfield Islands and Vanuatu off Malo and Spiritu Santo Islands; 36–175 m depth, muddy bottoms, adults occur shallower than juveniles; maximum size 9.5 cm SL.

Intraspecific comparisons. Subadults differ from adults in shallower head, narrower snout, slightly longer caudal peduncle and first dorsal-fin base, longer caudal fin and narrower pectoral fins (Tables 2, 9).

 Upeneus randalli Uiblein & Heemstra, 2011

Randall’s goatfish

Intraspecific comparison. The single subadult differs from adults in shallower maximum body and head depth, shallower caudal peduncle, shallower suborbital depth, larger eyes, longer anal-fin base, slightly narrower pectoral fins and wider bars on caudal fin, especially on lower fin lobe which is crossed by a dark stripe at mid of lobe (Tables 2, 9; Figure 2 G, H).

Franz Uiblein, Daniel C. Gledhill, Dimitri A. Pavlov, Tuan Anh Hoang and Shaker Shaheen. 2019. Three New Goatfishes of the Genus Upeneus (Mullidae) from the Indo-Pacific, with A Redescription of Colour Patterns in U. margarethae. Zootaxa. 4683(2); 151–196. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4683.2.1

[Ichthyology • 2017] Redescription and New Records of Jansen’s Goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), from the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean

 Parupeneus jansenii (Bleeker, 1856)
 Parupeneus heptacanthus (Lacepède, 1802)

DOI:  10.11646/zootaxa.4344.3.6 

Abstract

For Jansen’s goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), taxonomic knowledge has been rather poor and occurrence information restricted to a few localities only, with verified records from northern Sulawesi and Sunda Street (Indonesia), and Luzon (Philippines). This species is here included in the so-called “heptacanthus” group together with the Indo-Pacific cinnabar goatfish, P. heptacanthus, and five Indian Ocean congenerics, based on an evenly, symmetrically rounded posterior maxilla margin and similarities in meristic characters and preserved colour. In total 29 P. jansenii and 53 P. heptacanthus consisting of types, recently collected material from south-central Vietnam, southern Indonesia, and NE Australia, and geographically related reference material were studied along with single types of the other five heptacanthus-group species and P. angulatus, a morphologically similar Western Indian Ocean species. In total 62 quantitative meristic and morphometric characters including standard length (SL) were analysed after splitting the data into two size classes (small-sized fish, < 110 mm SL, vs. large-sized fish  > 110 mm SL) to account for size-related differences due to allometry. Diagnoses for P. jansenii and P. heptacanthus and a redescription for P. jansenii were prepared. Fresh-fish colour descriptions for both large- and small-sized voucher specimens of P. jansenii are provided and the effects of freshness status on colour patterns is documented. New records for P. jansenii for Vietnam, southern Indonesia and NE Australia (= first verified record for Australia) are reported and depth information (24–100 m depth range) is given for the first time. P. jansenii differs from the co-occurring P. heptacanthus - independently of size - in shallower body and caudal peduncle, smaller maximum head depth, shorter barbels, caudal and pelvic fins, shallower first dorsal fin, shallower first ray of second dorsal fin, and lack of small dark red or reddish-brown spot on or just below the eighth lateral-line scale. The populations of P. jansenii from Vietnam and Australia differ from each other in a single character, the height of the eighth dorsal-fin ray, but both overlap with the intermediate population from Indonesia. This comprehensive alpha-taxonomic approach provides a useful tool for uncovering the diversity of Parupeneus goatfishes.

Keywords: Pisces, heptacanthus species group, NE Australia, southern Indonesia, south-central Vietnam, morphometric characters, intraspecific variation, colour patterns

FIGURE 3. Parupeneus jansenii (left side) and P. heptacanthus (right side).
 (A) VNMN-I 4, 159 mm SL, Hon Ro landing site, Nha Trang City, Vietnam (Franz Uiblein); (B) VNMN-I 51, 135 mm SL, Binh Tan fish market, Nha Trang City, Vietnam (Tuan Anh Hoang); (C) CSIRO H 5972-19, 146 mm SL, Kedonganan, Jimbaran Bay (S coast of Bali), Indonesia (William T. White); (D) CSIRO H 8154-01, 81 mm SL, NE of Lizard Island, Queensland, Australia (Daniel C. Gledhill);
(E, F) VNMN-I 49, 170 mm SL, Binh Tan fish market, Nha Trang, Vietnam (Tuan Anh Hoang); (G) CSIRO H 5972-17, 150 mm SL, Kedonganan, Jimbaran Bay (S coast of Bali), Indonesia (William T. White); (H) CSIRO H 7379-07, 122 mm SL, NE of Cairns, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia (Daniel C. Gledhill).

Taxonomy

Genus Parupeneus Bleeker, 1863

Parupeneus jansenii (Bleeker, 1856)

Jansen’s goatfish 

Upeneus jansenii Bleeker, 1856 (type locality Manado, Sulawesi).

Parupeneus jansenii: Bleeker 1875; Randall 2004; Allen & Erdmann 2012

Description. Morphometric data as ratios of SL for large-sized fish, data for small-sized fish (including syntypes) in squared brackets: body elongated, its depth at first dorsal-fin origin 3.8–4.3 [3.9–4.5]; body depth at anal-fin origin 4.8–5.3 [4.8–5.4]; caudal peduncle depth 11–12 [11–13], subequal to interorbital length (10—12 [10–12]); maximum head depth 4.1–4.5 [4.2–4.9], subequal to barbel length (4.0–4.6 [3.9–4.6]); head depth through eye 4.7–5.2 [4.9–5.6]; head length 2.9–3.2 [3.0–3.2], larger than maximum depth of body and caudal-fin length (3.7–4.0 [3.5–4.0]); snout length 6.2–7.0 [6.6–8.0], shorter than postorbital length (8.0–9.4 [7.5–8.9]) in large-sized fish; orbit length 13–18 [13–15]; anal-fin height 7.2–8.4 [7.0–8.1]; second dorsal-fin height 7.3–9.3 [7.0–8.8]; pectoral-fin length 4.0–4.7 [4.3–4.6], subequal to barbel length and subequal to pelvic-fin length (4.6– 5.0 [4.3–4.9]) in small-sized fish.

Distribution, depth range, and size. Parupeneus jansenii occurs in the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean in the area ranging from south-central Vietnam and northern Philippines to southwestern Indonesia and NE Australia, with verified records from Nha Trang Bay (this study), Luzon (Randall 2004), northern Sulawesi (type locality Manado), Sunda Strait off southern Sumatra (Randall 2004), southern Bali and southern Lombok (this study), and Torres Strait to Great Barrier Reef (this study). Depth range is 24–100 m, maximum size is 159 mm SL.

Parupeneus heptacanthus (Lacepède, 1802)

Cinnabar goatfish

Sciaena heptacantha Lacepède, 1802 (type locality not given)

Upeneus cinnabarinus Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1829

Upeneus pleurospilos Bleeker, 1853 (type locality Ambon, Moluccas, Indonesia)

Parupeneus heptacanthus Kim & Amaoka 2001, Randall 2004, Randall & Heemstra 2009, Allen & Erdman 2012

Franz Uiblein, Tuan Anh Hoang and Daniel Gledhill. 2017. Redescription and New Records of Jansen’s Goatfish, Parupeneus jansenii (Mullidae), from the Western Pacific and Eastern Indian Ocean. Zootaxa. 4344(3); 541–559.  DOI:  10.11646/zootaxa.4344.3.6

[Ichthyology • 2016] Mulloidichthys flavolineatus flavicaudus • A New Subspecies of Goatfish (Perciformes, Mullidae) from the Red Sea and Arabian Sea

 Mulloidichthys flavolineatus flavicaudus 

 Fernandez-Silva & Randall, 2016 
 DOI:  10.3897/zookeys.605.8060

Abstract

The number of goatfish species has increased recently, thanks in part to the application of molecular approaches to the taxonomy of a family with conservative morphology and widespread intraspecific color variation. A new subspecies Mulloidichthys flavolineatus flavicaudus Fernandez-Silva & Randall is described from the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, including Socotra and Gulf of Oman. It is characterized by a yellow caudal fin, 25–28 gill rakers, and 37–38 lateral-line scales and it is differentiated from nominal subspecies M. flavolineatus flavolineatus by 1.7% sequence divergence at the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. The morphometric examination of specimens of M. f. flavolineatus revealed variation in head length, eye diameter, and barbel length, in western direction from the Hawaiian Islands, South Pacific, Micronesia, and the East Indies to the Indian Ocean. The population of Mulloidichthys f. flavicaudus subsp. n. in the Gulf of Aqaba differs from that of the remaining Red Sea by shorter barbels, smaller eyes, shorter head, and shorter pelvic fins. We present a list of 26 endemic fishes from the Gulf of Aqaba and discuss the probable basis for the endemism in the light of the geological history of this region.

Keywords: cytb, marine fish, glacial refugia, phylogeography, taxonomy, vicariance

Figure 4. Underwater photographs of Mulloidichthys flavolineatus flavicaudus subsp. n. from Dahab in the Gulf of Aqaba.

Photo by Sergey V. Bogorodsky. 

Diagnosis: Body elongate, the depth at first dorsal-fin origin 4.1–4.5 in SL; head moderately compressed, the length 3.0–3.3 in SL; snout long, slightly blunt. Barbels usually not reaching a vertical at posterior margin of preopercle, their length 4.1-5.0 in SL. Eye diameter 10.3–13.5 in SL. Pectoral-fin rays 16–18. Gill-raker counts 25–28 (usually 26 or 27); lateral-line scales 37–38. Caudal fin yellowish to yellow. [Diagnosis based on the Red Sea proper population, i.e. excluding the Gulf of Aqaba, see remarks].

Etymology: Mulloidichthys f. flavicaudus subsp. n. is named in reference to the yellow color of the caudal fin, in contrast to the whitish gray color of the caudal fin of M. f. flavolineatus.

Distribution: Mulloidichthys f. flavicaudus subsp. n. is restricted to the NW Indian Ocean biogeographic province, where it ranges from various locations in the Red Sea (including the Gulf of Aqaba), the Gulf of Tadjoura, the Gulf of Aden, and Socotra (Fig. 9). M. f. flavicaudus subsp. n. has extended its range to Oman (Fig. 11) and probably to the Maldives (Fig. 12), where it has encountered the western distribution of M. f. flavolineatus. Underwater photographs of fish with yellow and gray caudal fins suggest overlap and interbreeding by the two subspecies. Carpenter et al. (1997) included M. flavolineatus in their catalog of fishes of the Arabian Gulf. They did not cite any voucher specimens, and the photo they used is from Mauritius.

Figure 7. School of Mulloidichthys flavolineatus flavicaudus subsp. n. at Eilat, Gulf of Aqaba.

Photo by John E. Randall.  

 Iria Fernandez-Silva, John E. Randall, Daniel Golani and Sergey V. Bogorodsky. 2016. Mulloidichthys flavolineatus flavicaudus Fernandez-Silva & Randall (Perciformes, Mullidae), A New Subspecies of Goatfish from the Red Sea and Arabian Sea. ZooKeys. 605: 131-157. DOI:  10.3897/zookeys.605.8060