Badis kaladanensis, a new fish species (Teleostei: Badidae) from Mizoram, northeast India

Badis kaladanensis, a new percoid fish is described from the Kaladan basin of Mizoram, northeast India. It belongs to the Badis badis species group but can be easily distinguished from its congeners, except from B. kanabos and B. tuivaiei, in having a dark blotch on the dorsal fin between the base of 3rd to 5th spines. It is further distinguished from B. kanabos in having more scales in lateral row (27–30 vs. 25–26), more circumpeduncular scale rows (18–20 vs. 16–17) and smaller eye (7.5–8.9% SL vs. 9.5–12.7); and from B. tuivaiei in having fewer vertebrae (28–29 vs. 30–31) and more rakers on the first gill arch (9 vs. 6–8). The analysis of the mitochondrial DNA (coi and cytb) revealed the distinctness of B. kaladanensis from all other Badis species with the interspecific distance ranges from 5.4–20.4%. (coi) and 5.1–26.3% (cytb).

A new fish species of genus Garra (Teleostei: Cyprinidae) from Nagaland, India

A species of the genus Garra is described from the Langlung River, Brahmaputra basin, Nagaland, India. The new species is distinguished from its congeners in having weakly-developed unilobed proboscis, a distinct transverse lobe with 8–12 small sized unicuspid acanthoid tubercles, 30–32 lateral line scales, and 13–15 circumpeduncular scales.

Cryptic speciation in populations of the genus Aphyocharax (Characiformes: Characidae) from eastern Amazon coastal river drainages and surroundings revealed by single locus species delimitation methods

Recent studies in eastern Amazon coastal drainages and their surroundings have revealed new fish species that sometimes exhibit little morphological differentiation (cryptic species). Thus, we used a DNA-based species delimitation approach to test if populations showing the morphotype and typical character states of the Aphyocharax avary holotype correspond either to A. avary or A. brevicaudatus, two known species from the region, or if they form independent lineages, indicating cryptic speciation. WP and GMYC analyses recovered five lineages (species) in the ingroup, while a bPTP analysis delimited three lineages. ABGD analyses produced two possible results: one corroborating the WP and GMYC methods and another corroborating the bPTP method. All methods indicate undescribed cryptic species in the region and show variation from at least 1 to 4 species in the ingroup, depending on the approach, corroborating previous studies, and revealing this region as a possible hotspot for discovering undescribed fish species.

New fish species added to the ichthyofauna of Laguna Ojo de Liebre, Baja California Sur, México

The Laguna Ojo de Liebre (Scammon’s lagoon) is the iconic sanctuary of the Pacific gray whale and belongs to the El Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve in Baja California, México. From June 2015 to August 2016, six seasonal visits were conducted on the ichthyofauna in seven sites of the lagoon. By diving, trapping, hook & line, and gillnet commercial fishing, a total number of 39 fish species was identified belonging to 25 families. In this study a total number of eight fish species is added to the first two existing 20-year-old lists: the Gymnothorax mordax (Ayres, 1859), Apogon sp. Pomacanthus zonipectus (Gill, 1862), Balistes polylepis (Steindachner, 1876), Pareques viola (Gilbert 1898), Caranx sp., Sphoeroides lobatus (Steindachner, 1870), and the Icelinus sp. During 2015-2016, two anomalous events warmed the lagoon, and possibly, it contributed to the fish species movement from the adjacent tropical or subtropical zones. Ichthyofauna from Laguna Ojo de Liebre is reported here before the installation of reef modules as a refuge for red lobster and fish aggregation.

A new species of Pegasus (Syngnathiformes: Pegasidae) from the South China Sea

A new fish species from the South China Sea, Pegasus nanhaiensis sp. nov., is described herein. The new species is readily distinguished from all other species of the genus Pegasus with the following characteristics: A rounded hump-like tubercle on each of dorsal plates I, II, and III. Noticeable hexagonal patterns on the dorsal carapace with a clear boundary, and two paired caudolateral plates overlapping the junctions between tail rings II and III, and between tail rings IV and V. The integrated evidence from both morphological and genetic studies indicates that P. nanhaiensis represents an independent lineage within the genus Pegasus.

Effect of Microhabitat Structure on the Distribution of an Endangered Fish, Coreoperca kawamebari (Temminck & Schlegel, 1843) in the Geum River, South Korea

Macrophytes play a major role in the structuring of aquatic environments and may influence the distribution and feeding habits of fish species. We explored the microhabitat characteristics influencing the spatial distribution of newly discovered Coreoperca kawamebari (Temminck & Schlegel, 1843) in the upstream reaches of the Geum River. Out of 21 study sites, C. kawamebari was found in 10 sites, and its abundance was strongly positively correlated with “vegetated” microhabitats, especially those covered by elodeids (e.g., Ceratophyllum demersum). The utilization of elodeids by the piscivores fish, C. kawamebari, may limit the abundance of other native fishes, and stable isotope analysis also showed that C. kawamebari is likely to consume other fish species. However, the influence of other fish species on C. kawamebari is assumed to be small, considering that C. kawamebari is a latent predator. Although the abundance of other fish was low within the preferred microhabitat of C. kawamebari, other species were abundant in each site where C. kawamebari was dominant. From this finding, we conclude that the successful settlement of C. kawamebari in the upper section of the Geum River can be attributed to their habitat preferences. Although the elodeids favored by C. kawamebari generally have difficulty developing in the upstream section, the habitat creation by humans has contributed to the stable settlement of new fish species.

A new species of Stolephorus (Clupeiformes: Engraulidae) from the Bay of Bengal, India

A new fish species, Stolephorus tamilensis sp. nov., is described from the East coast of India. The major distinguishing characters are 5–6 small needle-like pre-pelvic scutes on belly; maxilla tip pointed, reaching to border of operculum, concave and indented in the preoperculum; 25–28 gill rakers on lower lobe of the first branchial arch; dorsal fin without spine; 17–19 anal-fin rays. Moreover, S. tamilensis sp. nov. present higher average genetic divergence values at mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I and 16S rDNA loci in comparison with congeners. Also, nucleotide diagnostic characters exclusive to S. tamilensis are identified. Neighbor-joining analysis revealed close relation between S. tamilensis and S. andhraensis.

Novel fisheries investigations by Harald Dannevig: some parallels with Johan Hjort on the other side of the world

Harald Dannevig was Australia’s first Director of fisheries research and Director of Australia’s first ocean-going research vessel. Dannevig’s initial contributions concerned hatchery technology, freshwater fisheries, and impacts of estuarine prawn trawling. Later, he revealed the growth and migration of sea mullet, the spawning of pelagic eggs in the coastal ocean, and he was the first to demonstrate the effect of onshore winds on recruitment to estuarine fisheries. Using plans of the first Norwegian research trawler Michael Sars, he advised on the construction and commissioning of Endeavour. He organized 99 research voyages over 6 years to determine suitable trawling grounds over ∼7000 km, discovering 263 new species, including 96 new fish species and ∼5000 catalogued specimens. Harald Dannevig’s significant achievements in Australia were soon forgotten after his death with the loss of Endeavour in the Southern Ocean at the beginning of World War I. Both Johan Hjort and Dannevig were numerate, loved natural history, and were keenly observant on the deck. As these two scientists did not correspond, their innovative and parallel thinking stems from the shared university environment with G.O. Sars, and the rapport between Sars and Harald’s father Gunder Dannevig, concerning the fish hatchery and stocking of larval cod.