Short Communication |
Corresponding author: Gino V. Limmon ( gino.limmon@gmail.com ) Corresponding author: Kunto Wibowo ( kuntowe@gmail.com ) Academic editor: Ronald Fricke
© 2024 Gino V. Limmon, Kunto Wibowo, Teguh Peristiwady, Ruby V. Kusumah, Muhammad Afrisal.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Limmon GV, Wibowo K, Peristiwady T, Kusumah RV, Afrisal M (2024) First Southern Hemisphere record of the longnosed stargazer, Ichthyscopus lebeck (Actinopterygii: Perciformes: Uranoscopidae). Acta Ichthyologica et Piscatoria 54: 37-41. https://doi.org/10.3897/aiep.54.113513
|
Two specimens (290.2 and 309.5 mm in standard length) of the longnosed stargazer, Ichthyscopus lebeck (Bloch et Schneider, 1801), were recently collected from Jakarta Bay, Jakarta, Indonesia. Described more than two centuries ago, I. lebeck has hitherto been documented exclusively from the Northern Hemisphere, encompassing the Arabian Sea, southern coastal India, the Bay of Bengal, the Andaman Sea, and Singapore. The present paper documents the first record of the species in the Southern Hemisphere. Detailed descriptions of these specimens are provided, contributing valuable insights into the characteristics of I. lebeck in the newly reported locality.
distribution, Indonesia, morphology, Southern Hemisphere
The genus Ichthyscopus Swainson, 1839, family Uranoscopidae, includes eight valid species, i.e. Ichthyscopus barbatus Mees, 1960; Ichthyscopus fasciatus Haysom, 1957; Ichthyscopus insperatus Mees, 1960; Ichthyscopus lebeck (Bloch et Schneider, 1801); Ichthyscopus nigripinnis Gomon et Johnson, 1999; Ichthyscopus pollicaris Vilasri, Ho, Kawai et Gomon, 2019; Ichthyscopus sannio Whitley, 1936; and Ichthyscopus spinosus Mees, 1960 (see
Two specimens of Ichthyscopus lebeck, caught as bycatch by fishermen from Jakarta Bay, Jakarta, Indonesia, were obtained at the Tanjung Pasir Fish Landing Port, Banten. They are described herein, being the first records of I. lebeck from waters off Indonesia and in the Southern Hemisphere.
Counts and measurements followed
Family Uranoscopidae Bonaparte, 1831
Ichthyscopus Swainson, 1839
MZB.26859, 309.5 mm SL, MZB.26860 mm SL, 290.2 mm SL, Jakarta Bay, 5°57′S, 106°42′E, Jakarta, Indonesia (purchased at the Tanjung Pasir Fish Landing Port, Banten, Indonesia, 3 Nov. 2022, by K. Wibowo; see Fig.
Meristic and morphometrics shown in Table
Counts and measurements (expressed as percentages of standard and head lengths) of Ichthyscopus lebeck from Indonesia.
Parameter | This study |
|
|
---|---|---|---|
Southern Hemisphere | Northern Hemisphere | ||
MZB.26859 | MZB.26860 | n = 11 | |
Standard length (SL) [mm] | 309.5 | 290.2 | 191–368 |
Counts | |||
Dorsal fin rays | II, 18 | II, 17 | II, 17.5–19 |
Anal fin rays | 18 | 18 | 17–19 |
Pectoral fin rays | 18 | 18 | 18–19 |
Pelvic fin rays | I, 5 | I, 5 | — |
Vertebrae (abdominal + caudal) | 9 + 16 | — | 9 + (16–17) |
Upper lip fimbriae (both sides) | 30 | 29 | 25–34 |
Lower lip fimbriae (both sides) | 48 | 46 | 43–53 |
Opercular fimbriae | 20 | 16 | 15–22 |
Cleithral flap fimbriae | 19 | 19 | 17–22 |
Scale rows | 60 | 55 | 50–61 |
Measurements [%SL] | |||
Body depth | 37.0 | 31.3 | 29.8–36.6 |
Head length (HL) | 40.9 | 42.2 | 39.7–43.3 |
Head width | 32.6 | 33.3 | 29.3–34.3 |
Pectoral fin length | 31.0 | 29.3 | 26.4–33.3 |
Pelvic fin length | 24.4 | 26.2 | 21.6–28.1 |
Measurements [%HL] | |||
Orbital diameter longitudinal | 11.7 | 10.7 | 10.1–13.6 |
Orbital diameter transverse | 10.1 | 9.4 | 9.1–10.6 |
Eye diameter | 6.8 | 7.5 | 6.4–9.1 |
Interorbital distance | 21.1 | 21.6 | 20.2–24.5 |
Interorbital fossa width | 16.9 | 17.5 | 14.9–19.5 |
Cleithral spine length | 24.1 | 22.8 | 16.0–27.4 |
(Fig.
The data on Indonesian specimens agreed closely with the diagnosis of Ichthyscopus lebeck given by
Ichthyscopus lebeck shares similarities with the east Asian species I. pollicaris and Australian species I. sannio in having three skin flaps developed on the ventral surface of abdomen, the upper half of the body dark brown with white blotches, and lacking transverse bands. However, I. lebeck is distinct from both in several aspects, including some morphological features, meristics, and coloration, as detailed by
Since its original description in
Ichthyscopus lebeck is known to inhabit sandy or muddy habitats in the intertidal zones of seagrass ecosystems in Singapore (
Because there are no significant natural geographical barriers that separate waters off Singapore (southern South China Sea) and Jakarta Bay (Java Sea), as well as coastal areas of the Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean, Andaman Sea, and Singapore, it is likely that I. lebeck is distributed along these coastlines where suitable habitats occur. The paucity of reports of the species’ presence in some areas may be due either to its secretive behavior, resulting in less common sightings, or to the population not being particularly abundant.
We are especially grateful to S. Sauri (MZB, Indonesia) for his efforts in cataloging the specimens and to Dr G. S. Hardy (Ngunguru, New Zealand) for assisting with the English text and valuable input in reviewing the manuscript. This study was supported by “Program Pendanaan Riset dan Inovasi untuk Indonesia Maju (RIIM) and Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan (LPDP), Kementerian Keuangan Republik Indonesia”.