Trypauchen pelaeos Murdy, 2006

Zainal Abidin, Danial Hariz, Lavoué, Sébastien, Mohd Abu Hassan Alshari, Norli Fauzani, Mohd. Nor, Siti Azizah, A. Rahim, Masazurah & Mohammed Akib, Noor Adelyna, 2021, Ichthyofauna of Sungai Merbok Mangrove Forest Reserve, northwest Peninsular Malaysia, and its adjacent marine waters, Check List 17 (2), pp. 601-631 : 618-619

Trypauchen pelaeos Murdy, 2006

Material examined. MALAYSIA • 1, TL 160 mm; Kedah State, Kampung Batu Lintang, Pompang Batu Lintang ; 05.625°N, 100.394°E; 17 Jul. 2019; Sébastien Lavoué leg.; USMFC (34) 00027 .

Identification. Maximum TL less than 200 mm; body very elongated, moderately compressed laterally; standard length (SL)>80% of total length; head length>20% of SL; eye rudimentary; cephalic sensory canals and pores absent; pelvic fins forming a cup; body uniformly light pink.

Trypauchen pelaeos is very similar to Trypauchen vagina (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) , but it can be distinguished by its less elongated body (head length>20% of SL). The type locality of this recently described species is only 40 km south of the Merbok river estuary (Murdy

2006). It is a mud-dwelling species, but more information is needed on its ecology (Murdy 2006). Trypauchen pelaeos may be common in estuarine environments in Southeast Asia although rarely collected because of its burrowing behaviour. Trypauchen pelaeos occurs in brackish and coastal muddy habitats in Southeast Asia (Murdy 2006).