Diplodus capensis ( Smith, 1844 )

Siddiqui, Pirzada Jamal, Amir, Shabir Ali & Masroor, Rafaqat, 2014, The sparid fishes of Pakistan, with new distribution records, Zootaxa 3857 (1), pp. 71-100 : 83-84

Diplodus capensis ( Smith, 1844)

Common name: Cape Porgy

Local names: Kissi, Kukkidia (Sindh); Tintle (Balochistan) ( Figures 8 & 15 O, P; Table 1 )

Sargus capensis Smith, 1844 : no pagination, Pl. 23 (fig. 2) (Southeastern coast of South Africa, southwestern Indian Ocean).

Diagnosis. Distinguished from its congeners by the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin rays XII, 13–14; pectoral-fin rays 16; anal-fin rays III, 13; pored lateral line scales 55–58; scale rows above and below lateral line 7½ and 17½; scale rows between the 5th dorsal-fin spine base and lateral line 6½; no scales on preopercular flange; gill rakers 17–18, 9–10 on the lower limb; 2nd anal-fin spine (2 AS) subequal to 3rd anal-fin spine, its ratio (2 AS /3 AS) 1.0–1.3 (mean 1.1); least infraorbital depth 8.0–9.3% of SL; ten narrow dusky bars on upper two thirds of body (very visible in juvenile stages), a large black blotch anteriorly on top of caudal peduncle extending to ventral margin.

Description. Counts and proportional measurements of Diplodus capensis are shown in Table 1 . Body deep and compressed, its depth 44.9–49.5% of SL; head somewhat small 28.9–34.6% of SL; dorsal profile of head slightly convex; mouth small and horizontal; maxilla reaching to below anterior edge of eye completely hidden under suborbitals when mouth closed; scale rows 7 on cheek; gill rakers small and 17–18 in number, nine to ten on lower arch; four pairs of projecting incisor teeth in upper jaw and lower jaw; side of jaws with small rows of molar teeth (three to four pairs in upper jaw and two to three rows in lower jaw); first dorsal spine is smallest (4.4–6.8% of SL) while fourth and fifth (13–15.7% of SL) longest; first anal-fin spine short (6.9–7.8% of SL), 2nd and 3rd anal spines subequal (approx. 10% of SL); caudal fin forked; upper lobe of caudal fin is slightly longer than lower one; pectoral-fins reaching to anal spine.

Color of fresh specimens. Head and body silvery to brassy; dorsal, caudal, pelvic and anal-fins are dusky gray, pectoral-fins hyaline, pelvic-fins blackish gray; a small black spot just above the pectoral-fin axil; a diffused blackish spot on the scales where the lateral line begins. Ten narrow dusky bars on upper two-thirds of body (very visible in juvenile stages); a large black blotch anteriorly on caudal peduncle, usually extending to both sides of ventral margin.

Distribution. Southeastern Atlantic: Angola to South Africa; southwestern Indian Ocean: South Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius, Oman, Iran and Pakistan.

Remarks. Bianchi (1985) reported Diplodus sargus kotschyi from Pakistan. Randall (1995), later on, reported Diplodus sargus kotschyi (now a synonym of D. sargus ) from Arabian Gulf to northwestern India and Diplodus sargus capensis (now Diplodus capensis ) from Angola, South Africa, southern Madagascar and Oman. However, Diplodus sargus is currently known from Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea and eastern Atlantic (Madeira) whereas D. capensis inhabits Angola to South Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius (Mascarenes) and Oman, ( Eschmeyer, 2013). Our specimens closely fit the description of Diplodus capensis although there are some variations from the nominal taxon. Heemstra and Heemstra (2004) mentioned XII, 14–15 dorsal-fin rays, 16–17 pectoral-fin rays and anal-fin rays III, 13–14. Randall (1995) reported 14–15 soft dorsal rays, 16–17 pectoral rays, 13–14 anal-rays, lateral line scales 62–72, gill rakers 6–8 +8–11 and body depth 2.0–2.25 of SL. In our specimens there are XII, 13–14 dorsalfin rays, 16 pectoral-fin rays, 13 anal-fin rays, 55–58 pored lateral line scales, gill rakers 17–18, 9–10 on the lower limb and body depth 2–2.25 of SL.

Day (1875) reported Diplodus noct (Valenciennes) from Red Sea (very common at Suez) to the coast of Balochistan and Sind. De la Paz (1978) considered D. noct and D. kotschyi from the Red Sea as sister species; however, Bauchot and Smith, in Fischer and Bianchi (1984) treated them as subspecies ( Randall, 1995). Apparently, Diplodus noct is restricted to the Red Sea whereas D. capensis has wider distribution.

Figures

FIGURE 8. Diplodus capensis, MUFS 39677 (formerly CEMB- P 2012 – 00015), 221 mm SL, WWFH, Karachi. A large dorsolateral black blotch on anterior portion of caudal peduncle reaching to bellow the lateral line.

FIGURE 15. Details of dentition (A-Y) and gill rakers (Z & Z 1) in species of family Sparidae from Pakistan; Acanthopagrus catenula, A) upper jaw & B) lower jaw; A. berda, C) upper jaw & D) lower jaw; A. arabicus, E) upper jaw & F) lower jaw; A. sheim, G) upper jaw & H) lower jaw; Sparidentex hasta, I) upper jaw & J) lower jaw; Sparidentex jamalensis., K) upper jaw & L) lower jaw; Crenidens indicus, M) upper jaw & N) lower jaw; Diplodus capensis, O) upper jaw & P) lower jaw; Q) upper and lower jaws of Diplodus omanensis; Rhabdosargus sarba, R) upper jaw & S) lower jaw; Rhabdosargus haffara, T) upper jaw & U) lower jaw; V) upper and lower jaws of Agryrops spinifer; W) upper and lower jaws of Cheimerius nufar; Pagellus affinis, X) upper jaw & Y) lower jaw; Z) Argyrops spinifer, showing comparatively small gill rakers; and Z 1) Cheimerius nufar, showing elongated fan-like gill rakers.