Hephaestus epirrhinos Vari and Hutchins

Morgan, David L., Allen, Gerald R., Pusey, Bradley J. & Burrows, Damien W., 2011, 2816, Zootaxa 2816, pp. 1-64 : 16

Hephaestus epirrhinos Vari and Hutchins

Longnose Sooty Grunter

Hephaestus epirrhinos is endemic to the Drysdale River system and a single tributary of the Carson River (Palmoondoora Creek) ( Hutchins 1977) ( Fig. 29). Allen and Allen (1998) also observed (but did not capture) the species in Palmoondoora Creek at the base of Morgan Falls. While the data presented here suggest that the species is restricted to the lower section of the Drysdale River, it is also found in the headwaters of the main channel (Morgan, unpublished data). Its presence in Palmoondoora Creek is puzzling, and may have resulted from a stream-capture event or translocation. It is found below, but not upstream of Morgan Falls, and has not been collected from the Morgan or Carson Rivers despite extensive sampling in these areas (see Morgan et al. 2006).