Hippocampus trimaculatus, Leach 1814

Sara A. Lourie, Riley A. Pollom & Sarah J. Foster, 2016, A global revision of the Seahorses Hippocampus Rafinesque 1810 (Actinopterygii: Syngnathiformes): Taxonomy and biogeography with recommendations for further research, Zootaxa 4146 (1), pp. 1-66 : 42

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.4146.1.1

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:35E0DECB-20CE-4295-AE8E-CB3CAB226C70

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6090999

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C42F37-0C45-733B-FF66-C9B8B944DECF

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Hippocampus trimaculatus
status

 

H. trimaculatus Leach 1814 View in CoL

English common names. Three-spot Seahorse, flat-faced seahorse, longnose seahorse, low-crowned seahorse, smooth seahorse, three-spotted seahorse.

Synonyms. H. kampylotrachelos Bleeker 1854 , H. manadensis Bleeker 1856 , H. mannulus Cantor 1849 , H. takakurae Tanaka 1916 .

Syntypes. BMNH 1982.6.17.42, BMNH 1982.6.17.43 (designated here as lectotype), BMNH 1982.6.17.44-45 (2), BMNH 1982.6.17.46-47 (2).

Type locality. China Seas.

Distribution. Cambodia, China ( Hong Kong SAR and Province of Taiwan), France (Tahiti), India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam.

Notes. The syntype series labeled as H. trimaculatus is actually a mixture of species: BMNH 1982.6.17.42 is H. barbouri (larger specimen) and H. mohnikei (smaller specimen); BMNH 1982.6.17.43 is H. trimaculatus , and is hereby designated as a lectotype; BMNH 1982.6.17. 44–45 are H. trimaculatus ; BMNH 1982.6.17.46–47 are H. spinosissimus . The type specimen of H. kampylotrachelos matches H. trimaculatus morphologically and meristically, as does the single specimen, which is in poor condition and was found among nesting birds that Kuiter (2001) used to resurrect the species name. Both H. mannulus and H. manadensis are considered synonyms based on their type descriptions, and for H. manadensis examination of the holotype. Genetic data suggest there is a deep division between H. trimaculatus specimens from west and east of Wallace’s Line (2.9%, K2P distance, 696 bp cyt b, Lourie & Vincent 2004a; 1.93%, 648 bp, CO1, BOLD 2016). There is some morphological evidence (slight difference in modal counts of tail rings and pectoral fin rays) to support this division as well (Appendix D). However, the difference is only retained for pectoral fin rays when Australian specimens are included and may not represent species distinctions. That said, we are currently treating Australian specimens in this group as a separate species, H. dahli (see above). Further research is needed to understand exactly where the changeover occurs and if there is a zone of overlap. Some specimens of H. trimaculatus have a zebra-striped pattern. Morphology, meristics and genetics identify these specimens as an unusual colour-morph of H. trimaculatus and not a separate species.

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