A new species of the jawfish genus Opistognathus from Taiwan, northwestern Pacific Ocean (Perciformes, Opistognathidae)

Yo Su; Hsuan-Ching Ho

doi:10.3897/zookeys.1220.123541

A new species of the jawfish genus Opistognathus from Taiwan, northwestern Pacific Ocean (Perciformes, Opistognathidae)

Zookeys. 2024 Dec 9:1220:165-174. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1220.123541. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Yo Su¹, Hsuan-Ching Ho^{1

2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science Technology, Kaohsiung, Taiwan National Kaohsiung University of Science Technology Kaohsiung Taiwan.
² Institute of Marine Biology, National Dong Hwa University, Pingtung, Taiwan National Dong Hwa University Pingtung Taiwan.
³ Australian Museum, Sydney, Australia Australian Museum Sydney Australia.

Abstract

A new species of jawfish genus Opistognathus is described based on a specimen collected from a beach in the Peng-hu Islands during a cold snap. The new species, Opistognathuscryos sp. nov., differs from its congeners in having a rigid upper jaw, 10-11 + 1 + 19-22 = 31-33 gill rakers, 55 scale rows in lateral series, 10 + 16 = 26 vertebrae, the terminus of the lateral line at the base of the fourth segmented dorsal-fin ray (15^th in total rays), the head, nape, dorsal-fin base above lateral line, throat, chest, and pectoral-fin base naked, dorsal fin with eight blotches along its entire base, body with five horizontal dark stripes, nape with two dark blotches in front of the dorsal-fin origin, and a caudal fin with five narrow, dark bands. A detailed description is provided and compared to its similar congeners.

Keywords: Actinopterygii; biodiversity; ichthyology; morphology; taxonomy.

Yo Su, Hsuan-Ching Ho.

Grants and funding

National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium