A New Genus and Two New Species of the Family Aulopidae (Aulopiformes), Commonly Referred to as Aulopus, Flagfins, Sergeant Bakers or Threadsails, in Australasian Waters

Abstract

Two new species of the aulopiform family Aulopidae are described from waters off northern New Zealand, eastern Australia and the Tasman Sea. Hime pyrhistion sp. nov., previously confused with Hime japonica (Gunther, 1877), differs from that species in having a higher dorsal fin in both males and females, together with slight differences in colouration. Specific recognition of the two is supported by genetic evidence, with genetic distances of CO1 separating the two of a similar magnitude as distances between H. curtirostris (Thomson, 1967), H. diactithrix (Prokofiev, 2008) and H. japonica. A morphological redescription of H. japonica is provided for comparison. A new genus Leptaulopus is erected for Aulopus damasi Tanaka, 1915 and a second new species L. erythrozonatus sp. nov. is described from four specimens collected in northern New Zealand and eastern Australian waters. Leptaulopus is distinguishable from the other three genera of the family, Aulopus Cloquet, 1816, Hime Starks, 1924 and Latropiscis Whitley, 1931, most noticeably in having a more slender body, a more posteriorly placed dorsal fin, and finer, more cardiform teeth in the jaws, as well as relatively great genetic distances of CO1. The new species is separable from L. damasi by its more numerous dorsal fin rays (15 or 16 vs 13 or 14), lateral line scales (44 vs 33-37) and vertebrae (44 vs 36), smaller eye and longer, more depressed snout. A neotype is designated for L. damasi, and a revised description of the species is provided.