Selenanthias analis Tanaka

Gill, Anthony C., Pogonoski, John J., Moore, Glenn I. & Johnson, Jeffrey W., 2021, Review of Australian species of Plectranthias Bleeker and Selenanthias Tanaka (Teleostei: Serranidae: Anthiadinae), with descriptions of four new species, Zootaxa 4918 (1), pp. 1-116 : 105-107

Selenanthias analis Tanaka

Figures 44–45 ; Tables 1–17, 30

Common name: Pearlspot Fairy Basslet

Selenanthias analis Tanaka 1918: 516 , pl. 138, fig. 385 (type locality: Tokyo market).— Gloerfelt-Tarp & Kailola 1984: 138, 326 (colour photo, diagnosis, northwestern Australia).— Paxton et al. 1989: 507 (checklist).— Hutchins 2001: 30 (checklist).— Allen et al. 2006: 996 (checklist).— Larson et al. 2013: 103 (checklist, Northern Territory).— Anderson 2018: 51 (checklist). — Parenti & Randall 2020: 44 (checklist).

Diagnosis. The following characters distinguish S. analis from congeners: dorsal fin with 16–19, usually 17 segmented dorsal-rays; lower gill rakers 19–23; males with large black blotch on soft part of anal fin.

Remarks. Selenanthias analis is a relatively large anthiadine (largest specimen 170 mm SL, Kamohara 1952) found from southern Japan, Taiwan, and possibly Vietnam and Guam (see below), as well as northwestern Australia. Within Australia, it is known from the North West Shelf and Arafura Sea ( Figure 45 ).

Our use of the name S. analis is tentative, pending more complete revisionary studies of the genus. In particular, the status of S. myersi is in need of review. Randall (1995) described the species on the basis of the 58.6 mm SL holotype from off Vietnam, two 77.1–87.0 mm SL paratypes from the Macclesfield Bank, South China Sea, and a 61.3 mm SL paratype from Guam, Mariana Islands. He compared it with four specimens of S. analis , 92.0–100.0 mm SL, and differentiated it on the basis of coloration (absence versus presence of a dark spot on the anal fin), number of lower gill rakers (22 versus 19–21) and bony interorbital width (4.3–4.5 versus 3.45–3.8 in HL). However, we note that dark spots are variably present or absent in our Australian specimens of S. analis (absent in five specimens, 41.0–90.0 mm SL, and present in 11 specimens 85.0– 98.5 mm SL), bony interorbital widths overlap broadly with the S. myersi type specimens (9.2–10.4 % SL and 3.9–4.3 in HL for our Australian S. analis specimens versus 9.1–9.7 % SL and 4.3–4.5 in HL for S. myersi ) and counts of lower gill rakers also overlap (19–23 versus 22). However, the situation is further complicated by the potential presence of two species in Indonesian waters: a preliminary comparison of COI sequence data for five specimens from Lombok, Indonesia (all with dark anal-fin spots) and two specimens from Western Australia (no anal-fin spot) suggests two clades, one consisting of the Western Australian specimen and one of the Indonesian specimens, and the other consisting of the remaining Indonesian specimens. Because of this uncertainty, our account for S. analis is based entirely on northwestern Australian specimens.

We add the following new observations for Australian specimens of S. analis : scales with basal cteni; vertebrae 10+16; supraneurals 3; predorsal formula 0/0+0/2/1+1 or 0/0+0/2+1/1; dorsal pterygiophores in interneural spaces 9–13 1/1/1/1+1/1 or 1/1/1/1+1/1+1; terminal dorsal pterygiophore in interneural space 18–19; 0–2 trisegmental pterygiophores associated with dorsal fin; 3–6 trisegmental pterygiophores associated with anal fin; terminal anal pterygiophore in interhaemal space 5–6; ribs present on vertebrae 3 through 10; epineurals present on vertebrae 1 through 12–13; parhypural and hypurals autogenous; well-developed hypurapophysis on parhypural; epurals 3; single uroneural (posterior uroneural absent); ventral tip of cleithrum with well-developed posteroventral process; proximal tip of first anal-fin pterygiophore near distal tips of parapophyses on vertebra 10.

Morphometric data are summarised in Table 30.

Material examined. Western Australia, Australia. AMS I.22807-039, 4: 90.0– 98.5 mm SL, 175 km north of Port Hedland , 18°32′S, 118°17′E, 200-204 m, Engel trawl, J. R. Paxton, RV Soela, 2 Apr 1982 ; CSIRO H 751-4 , 94.1 mm SL, north of Dampier Archipelago , 19°08.9′S, 116°52.6′E to 19°08.4′S, 116°54.1′E, 196–198 m, Frank and Bryce demersal trawl, CSIRO, FRV Soela, 24 Oct 1986 (SO0686/84) ; CSIRO H 1036-9 , 90.0 mm SL, CSIRO H 1036-10 , 93 mm SL (radiograph only), CSIRO H 1036-11 , 96 mm SL (radiograph only), CSIRO H 1036-12 , 3 : 85–88 mm SL (radiographs only), north of Cape Lambert , 19°06.1′S, 117°07.0′E to 19°06.5′S, 117°08.8′E, 178–183 m, Frank and Bryce demersal trawl, CSIRO, FRV Soela, 12 Oct 1987 (SO0787/129) ; CSIRO H 6374-15 , 71.0 mm SL, northwest of Geraldton , from 27°55.72′S, 113°08.28′E to 27°56.02′S, 113°08.64′E, 252-253 m, beam trawl, CSIRO, FRV Southern Surveyor, 4 Dec 2005 (field station number SS1005/99) ; CSIRO H 6378-18 , 41 mm SL (radiograph only), west of Exmouth Gulf , 21°59.17′S, 113°49.20′E to 21°59.79′S, 113°49.14′E, 165–166 m, beam trawl, CSIRO, FRV Southern Surveyor, 11 Dec 2005 (field station number SS1005/153) ; CSIRO H 6604-02 , 58 mm SL (radiograph only), west of Barrow Island , from 20°58.86′S, 114°43.42′E to 20°59.41′S, 114°43.74′E, 205–210 m, beam trawl, M.F. Gomon, FRV Southern Surveyor, 10 Jun 2007 (field station number SS0507/6) . Northern Territory, Australia. NTM S.12927-003, 2: 84.6–93.0 mm SL, Arafura Sea , north of Bathurst Island, 9°59′S, 130°10′E, 169 m, R. S. Williams, FV Clipper Bird, 16 Nov 1990 .

Non-Australian specimens examined (data not included in descriptions or summary tables). Indonesia. CSIRO H 7220-06 (field number LM-684), 110.3 mm SL , CSIRO H 7220-07 (field number LM-685), 119.5 mm SL , CSIRO H 7220-08 (field number LM-686), 123 mm SL, Tanjung Luar fish market, southeast coast of Lombok, Indonesia , 08°45′S, 116°35′S, W . T. White , 05 Nov 2010 ; CSIRO H 7221-04 (field number LM-742), 119.0 mm SL , CSIRO H 7221-05 (field number LM-743), 120 mm SL (radiograph only), Tanjung Luar fish market, southeast coast of Lombok, Indonesia , 08°45′S, 116°35′S, W . T. White , 06 Nov 2010 . Taiwan. ASIZP 55519, 105.3 mm SL (radiograph only), Kaohsiung, 22°25′N, 120°17′E, S.C. Lee, 28 Mar 1980 (radiograph from Shao 2020) . Vietnam. CAS 53554, 58.6 mm SL (holotype of S. myersi Randall 1995 ; radiograph only), South China Sea, off Vietnam , 15°40′N, 109°25.5′E, 110–200 m, 3 m beam trawl , R.L. Bolin , MV Stranger , 27 Feb 1960 ( Scripps NAGA 60-212 ) .

Figures

FIGURE 44. Selenanthias analis, CSIRO H 1036-9, 90.0 mm SL, north of Cape Lambert, Western Australia. Photo by T. Carter, CSIRO.

FIGURE 45. Distribution records for Selenanthias barroi (closed circles; eastern-most record is type locality) and Australian S. analis (open circles).