Journal of the Marine Biological Association of India

Range extension of Acanthocepola indica (Perciformes: Cepolidae) in the north-eastern Indian Ocean with taxonomic description

Volume 64 Issue 2

T. K. Teena Jayakumar, P. Kodeeswaran, D. Thinesh Santhar, T. T. Ajith Kumar and Kuldeep K. Lal

10.6024/jmbai.2022.64.2.2251-17

Abstract

Band fishes are relatively rare, have no economic value and are often caught in by-catch. Acanthocepola indica has been reported herein for the first time from the coast of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andaman Sea, India based on five specimens, adding to the cepolid diversity of the region. The species is described with detailed meristic and morphometric characters and compared with its known congeners. Molecular confirmation of the species was carried out using the partial mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I gene. This report updates the geographical distribution of this species, filling the missing link in the distributional range of the species along the Indo-Pacific region

Keywords

Band fish, Acanthocepola indica, cepolidae, north-eastern Indian Ocean

Date : 24-08-2022