Lestidiops extremus (Ege, 1953)

Ho, Hsuan-Ching & Lin, Tzu-Yung, 2023, Adult morphology and redescription of Lestidiops indopacificus (Ege, 1953), with comments on the features of related species (Teleostei, Aulopiformes, Paralepididae), ZooKeys 1160, pp. 109-124 : 109

Lestidiops extremus (Ege, 1953)

Fig. 3B

Lestidium extremum Ege, 1953: 136, fig. 29 (type locality: Molucca Passage, 0°18'S, 132°52'E [West Papua, Indonesia], ca 100 m depth). Rofen 1966: 301 (listed). Post 1972: 147 (type catalog; in Lestidiops , but possibly referable to Uncisudis ).

Lestidiops extremus (Ege, 1953): Fukui and Ozawa 2004: 293 (list). Ho and Huang 2022: 580 (redescription, adult).

Material examined.

Holotype: ZMUC P.2136999 (21.8 mm TL), 0°18'S, 132°52'E, West Papua, Indonesia, ca 100 m.

Non - types: AMS I.36462-006 (1, 190 mm SL), about 80 km northwest off Camarines Norte Province, southeastern Luzon , Philippines, 14°50.46'N, 123°17.30'E - 14°47.35'N, 123°22.33'E, otter trawl, 760-770 m, 27 Sep. 1995 • SAIAB 203471 (1, ca. 157), 12°42'59.4"N, 96°36'30"E, Myanmar, Andaman Sea , 25 May 2015 .

Diagnosis.

Species of Lestidiops with VFO clearly behind DFO and slightly behind posterior end of dorsal-fin base; anus well behind DFO; posterior end of maxilla extending nearly to vertical drawn through anterior margin of eye; lateral-line scales: PVLL 37-38, PDLL 32-34, PALL 50-51, TLL 68-71, including 62-63 large + 5-8 small scales; vertebrae: PHV 41, CV 39-40, PVV 38, PDV 32-33, PAL 50, TV 80-81; gill rakers 9+25 = 34; anal-fin rays 30-31. Adults uniformly black; juveniles with dark blotches and broad bands.

Distribution.

Type series from off West Papua, Indonesia, ca 100 m depth; adults collected from off southeastern Luzon Island, Philippines, at 760-770 m depth.

Remarks.

This species was originally described from a type series consisting of three larvae from Indonesia, and the only previously known adult was reported from the Philippines by Ho and Huang (2022). This is a very rare species, with only these four specimens and one additional adult from Myanmar known. This Myanmar specimen represents the first record in the eastern Indian Ocean and suggests that L. extremus may have a broader distribution range in the Indo-west Pacific region than has been suspected.

Figures

Figure 3. Photographs of two Lestidiops from Myanmar A L. extremus (Ege, 1953), SAIAB 203471, ca 157 mm SL, with bars indicating DFO (upper), VFO (lower left), and AFO (lower right) B L. mirabilis (Ege, 1933), SAIAB 203473, ca 180 mm SL, with bars indicating DFO (upper), VFO (lower right), and AFO (lower left) C head of specimen as in B, with arrow pointing to nostrils.