A new snake eel species of the genus Ophichthus (Anguilliformes: Ophichthidae) from the southeast coast of India,Bay of Bengal,with the taxonomic account of Ophichthus chilkensis

A new species of the ophichthid eel of the family Ophichthidae is described based on five specimens collected from the Mudasalodai fish landing center, off Cuddalore coast, southeast coast of India, Bay of Bengal. Ophichthus naevius sp. nov. is distinguished from its congeners by having a unique color pattern: dorsal body with numerous dense dark spots or patches, ventral body pale yellowish green, dorsal-fin origin just before pectoral-fin tip, vertebral formula: 12–14/52–53/134–138, and teeth on jaw uniserial and pointed. The study also reports the range extension and molecular evidence of Ophichthus chilkensis from South India. Molecular analyses were performed for both species, and their phylogenetic relationship suggests that the new species exhibits 10.2% genetic divergence with its congener Ophichthus sangjuensis, followed by Ophichthus brevicaudatus (10.4%), and Ophichthus sp. 1 (11.8%) also forms the closest clade in both Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood (ML) tree. Similarly, according to the topology of the ML tree, the species O. chilkensis forms a clade with Ophichthus sp. 5, Ophichthus remiger, Ophichthus frontalis, Ophichthus sp. 6, and Ophichthus rex, suggesting that it would be the genetically closest congener.     

Monognathus berteli sp. nov. from the Indian Ocean (Pisces,Monognathidae)

A new deepsea monognathid species,Monognathus berteli, is described based on one specimen collected pelagically in the northwestern Indian Ocean at 1440–1018 meters of depth. LikeM. taningi andM. bertini, it belongs to the short-skulled species-group and has very long pectoral fins, but differs from these species by several meristic characters. The described specimen has a very long caudal filament (53% SL) which is not known from otherMonognathus. However, the fragile filament is not used as a diagnostic character since it could easily be broken.     

Gordiichthys combibus, a new species of eastern Pacific sand-eel (Anguilliformes: Ophichthidae)

A new species of bascanichthyin ophichthid, Gordiichthys combibus, is described from shallow water along the Pacific coast of Colombia. It is the first known eastern Pacific species of Gordiichthys and is very similar to G. randalli from Puerto Rico. It differs from its other western Atlantic congeners in vertebral number and other characters. A key to the genus is provided.     

A new species of Limonium (Plumbaginaceae) from Soqotra (Yemen)

Abstract

Limonium guigliae, from the island of Soqotra (Yemen) is described. This new species, close to L. paulayanum differs from it by its size, flower morphology and ecology.     

A new genus and species of deep-sea glass sponge (Porifera, Hexactinellida, Aulocalycidae) from the Indian Ocean

New hexactinellid sponges were collected from 2589 m depth on the Carlsberg Ridge in the Indian Ocean during deep-sea dredging. All fragments belong to a new genus and species, Indiellagen. n.ridgenensissp. n., a representative of the family Aulocalycidae described here. The peculiar features of this sponge, not described earlier for other Aulocalycidae, are: longitudinal strands present in several layers and epirhyses channelization.     

Apterichtus keramanus, a new snake-eel from Okinawa, southern Japan (Ophichthinae, Ophichthidae)

A new snake-eel,Apterichtus keramanus, is described on the basis of a single 276-mm TL specimen trawled from the coast of Kerama Islands, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The species is unique in the genus in having the posterior nostril opening entirely inside the mouth and a dark band running from the anteroventral margin of the eye to the upper lip.     

Description of a new species of deep-water crab of the genus Homolodromia A. Milne-Edwards, 1880 from the northern Indian Ocean (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura: Homolodromiidae)

ABSTRACT

Homolodromia rajeevani, a new species of deep-water homolodromiid sponge crab, is described from the northern Indian Ocean (Arabian Sea, depth 957 m, and Bay of Bengal, 645 m), and is the first record of the genus from the area. This species resembles the western Indian Ocean species, namely, Homolodromia bouvieri Doflein, 1904, in having 2 terminal spines on the propodi of the last two pereopods, but can be easily distinguished from the latter species by the inflated carapace, simple long setae on carapace and appendages, slender pseudo-rostral spines separated by a U-shaped base, and a slender arched dactylus of cheliped with maximum elevation at proximal part which bears broadly circular depressions with sparse setae. The most diagnostic character is the higher number of spines on the occlusal surfaces of propodal thumbs and dactyli of the pseudochela of the last two pereopods as compared to H. bouvieri. A key for the identification of the species under the genus Homolodromia is also provided.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:48894F49-5124-4723-9FF2-3D30FB536DA5     

A new genus of large hydrothermal vent‐endemic gastropod (Neomphalina: Peltospiridae)

Recently discovered hydrothermal vent fields on the East Scotia Ridge (ESR, 56–60°S, 30°W), Southern Ocean, and the South West Indian Ridge (SWIR, 37°S 49°E), Indian Ocean, host two closely related new species of peltospirid gastropods. Morphological and molecular (mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, COI) characterization justify the erection of G igantopelta gen. nov. within the Peltospiroidae with two new species, G igantopelta chessoia sp. nov. from ESR and G igantopelta aegis sp. nov. from SWIR. They attain an extremely large size for the clade Neomphalina, reaching 45.7 mm in shell diameter. The oesophageal gland of both species is markedly enlarged. Gigantopelta aegis has a thick sulphide coating on both the shell and the operculum of unknown function. The analysis of a 579‐bp fragment of the COI gene resulted in 19–28% pairwise distance between Gigantopelta and six other genera in Peltospiridae, whereas the range amongst those six genera was 12–28%. The COI divergence between the two newly described species of Gigantopelta was 4.43%. Population genetics analyses using COI (370 bp) of 30 individuals of each species confirmed their genetic isolation and indicate recent rapid demographic expansion in both species. © 2015 The Linnean Society of London     

Review of the fish parasitic genus Ceratothoa Dana, 1852 (Crustacea,Isopoda, Cymothoidae) from South Africa,including the description of two new species

The genus Ceratothoa Dana, 1852 is revised for South African waters and re-diagnosed. Ceratothoa retusa (Schioedte & Meinert, 1883) is recorded from the eastern coast, and Ceratothoa africanae sp. n. and C. famosa sp. n. are described; C. imbricata (Fabricius, 1775) and C. trigonocephala (Leach, 1818), are redescribed, revised and excluded from the South African fauna. Ceratothoa africanae sp. n. can be distinguished by the stout body shape of the female; triangular cephalon with a pointed rostrum; short uropods which do not extend past the pleotelson; large carinae on the pereopod basis; a broad pleon; and large medial lobes on female pleopods. Ceratothoa famosa sp. n. is characterised by the long rectangular body shape; pereonite 1 with a raised medial protrusion; narrow antenna with antennule article 1 expanded; uropods which reach the posterior margin of the pleotelson; narrow rami on uropods; and no appendix masculina on pleopod 2 of the male specimens.     

Echinophycus minutus (Rhodomelaceae, Ceramiales), a new red algal genus and species from north-western Australia

Echinophycus minutus gen. et sp. nov. (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta) is described for specimens collected from a deep‐water habitat in the Dampier Archipelago, northwestern Australia. Plants were dredged from a coarse sand/rubble habitat, where they were partially decumbent and attached to the substratum by numerous unicellular rhizoids, Thalli are to 25 mm in height, uniaxial, with four pericentral cells and a persistent pigmented trichoblast arising on each axial cell. Tricho‐blasts are arranged in a spiral pattern, with a 90° divergence between successive segments. Each trichoblast is composed of a basal cell bearing a cluster of unbranched filaments. Tetrasporangia are tetrahedral and formed in series in normal branches. Procarps have two sterile cell groups. Spermatangia are formed In heads that are terminal on trichoblasts. The new genus is placed in the tribe Brongniartelleae of the family Rhodomelaceae, differing from all other included genera in the morphology of the trichoblasts.     

Description of a new species of the genus Awaous Valenciennes, 1837 (Gobiiformes: Oxudercidae) from the middle stretch of the Mahanadi River,Odisha, India,with comments on the Awaous species from India

A new species of the genus Awaous (Oxudercidae), Awaous motla sp. nov., is described based on 18 specimens collected from the Mahanadi River near Sonepur, Subarnapur District, and 3 specimens from the same river near Boudh bridge, Boudh District of Odisha, India. This species is distinct from its congeners by having a combination of characteristics: relatively small eyes, diameter of 6.6–8.4 in head length (LH); robust and long snout, 2.0–2.6 in LH; eye diameter 2.7–4.1 in snout length; cephalic sensory pore system interrupted with eight pores; predorsal scales 13–15; longitudinal scale series 55–58; gill rakers 2 + 1 + (6–7) on the first gill arch; teeth small, conical, and in a single row on the upper jaw and multiserial (2–3) on the lower jaw. This species is also differentiated from some of its congeners in the nucleotide composition of the cytochrome c oxidase I gene by 8.3%–13.8% Kimura two-parameter (K2P) distance and belongs to a separate cluster in the maximum likelihood tree analysis. This finding is also supported by the species delimitation analysis based on Assemble Species by Automatic Partitioning. The new species holds high commercial value in its locality and needs special conservation attention for sustainable utilization.     

Two new species of the genus Sennertia (Acari: Chaetodactylidae) phoretic on Carpenter bees from west Bengal,India

Two new species of Sennertia Oudemans, 1905, Sennertia punctatus sp. nov. and Sennertia xylocopi sp. nov. which are phoretic on Carpenter bees collected from West Bengal for the first time are illustrated and described.     

A new species, Parupeneus procerigena, from the Saya de Malha Bank in the western Indian Ocean (Perciformes: Mullidae)

A new mullid fish, Parupeneus procerigena, is described on the basis of 13 specimens (118.9–198.4 mm SL) from depths of 92–148 m off the Saya de Malha Bank in the western Indian Ocean. This species resembles P. chrysopleuron and P. heptacanthus in color pattern without black stripes or spots, but it differs from them in having more gill rakers, two scales in lachrymal region, deeper body, deeper cheek, and longer distance between nostrils. Received: April 4, 2000 / Revised: July 27, 2000 / Accepted: August 27, 2000     

A new species of the genus Goezia Zeder, 1800 (Nematoda: Anisakidae) from the fish,Mastacembelus armatus (Lacep.) from West Bengal,India

Goezia moraveci n. sp. is described from light microscope and scanning electron microscope studies of the specimens recovered from the freshwater fish Mastacembelus armatus from West Bengal, India. G. moraveci differs from other species of the genus in having a small body size, the excretory pore posterior to the level of the nerve-ring, a very short, wide intestinal caecum and a long ventricular appendage (ratio 1: 6–15), a different number and arrangement of caudal papillae, and cuticular spines surrounding the bases of the caudal papillae. This represents the first species of the genus from a piscine host in India.     

A new genus and species of the Syllidae (Annelida, Polychaeta) from south India

A syllid species new to science is described from intertidal sandy sediments on the cast coast of India, for which a new genus is erected: Psammosyllis aliceae gen. et sp.n. Incorporation into either the Eusyllinae or the Exogoninae is unresolved, because it possesses characters of both of these poorly defined subfamilies.     

Four new deepwater Ophichthus (Anguilliformes: Ophichthidae) from Japan with a redescription of Ophichthus pallens (Richardson 1848)

Ichthyological Research - In this paper, new and uncertain Japanese snake eels of the genus Ophichthus are treated. Ophichthus kusanagi, O. lupus, O. oligosteus and O. yamakawai are herein...