Enneapterygius philippinus

Enneapterygius philippinus (Peters, 1868)

[New English name: Luzon Triplefin]

Figures 4, 6, 13; Tables 5–7

Tripterygium philippinum Peters, 1868: 269 (type locality: Luzon, Philippines).

Enneapterygius philippinus: Fricke, 1997: 274 (in part; Luzon, Philippines).

Lectotype. ZMB 6708, male, 20.4 mm SL, eastern end of Luzon, Philippines, Oct. 1859, F. Jagor.

Diagnosis. A species of Enneapterygius (Fig. 13) with the following combination of characters: 11 second dorsal-fin spines; 9 third dorsal-fin rays; I, 17 anal-fin rays; iv + 3 + vii = 14 pectoral-fin rays; 15 pored lateral-line scales; 19 notched lateral-line scales; 32 scale rows in longitudinal series; 3 scales below 1st notched lateral-line scale; mandibular pore formula 3 + 2 + 3; head relatively short, its length 29.8% of SL; upper length 11.1% of SL; anterior nostril tentacle unbranched; orbital tentacle long, narrow, with slightly rounded edge, its length 76.5% of pupil diameter; body brownish with indistinct broad transverse bands; head and base of caudal fin reddish; irregular spots aligned horizontally on level of longitudinal scale series; all fins with black spots, except for pelvic-fin; lower half of head and pectoral-fin base black in nuptial males.

Distribution. Enneapterygius philippinus is currently known only from Luzon, the Philippines on the basis of the lectotype (Peters 1868; this study) (Fig. 13).

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TABLE 5. (continued)

H and L indicate holotype and lectotype, respectively

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TABLE 7. (continued)

H and L indicate holotype and lectotype, respectively

Remarks. Although Fricke (1997) considered eight nominal species to be junior synonyms of E. philippinus, all of the former can be differentiated from E. philippinus on the basis of morphological characters (See Remarks. under E. minutus). The lectotype of E. philippinus (ZMB 6708, male, 20.4 mm SL) was designated by Fricke (1997) (Fig. 13). However, the paralectotype (ZMB 32768, female, 18.8 mm SL) was re-identified during the present study as a female of E. minutus (see Table 3). Enneapterygius philippinus is similar to E. minutus, herein redescribed as a valid species, as follows: 10–13 (modally 11) second dorsal-fin spines; 11–15 pored lateral-line scales; 17–22 notched lateral-line scales; 2–4 (modally 3) scales below the 1st notched lateral-line scale; head short, its length 24.7–32.4% of SL; and upper jaw short, its length 7.4–11.0% of SL (Fig. 6; Tables 6, 7). However, the former has long and slightly rounded orbital tentacle (its length 76.5% of pupil diameter) [vs. slender and pointed (its length less than or subequal to half of pupil diameter) (Fig. 5D) in E. minutus], double symphyseal mandibular pores (mandibular pore formula 3 + 2 + 3) [vs. single symphyseal mandibular pore (mandibular pore formula usually 3 + 1 + 3) (Fig. 8)]. Furthermore, the black pigmentation pattern in nuptial males of E. minutus is expanded to cover the entire body, although especially darker on the lower half of the head, and pectoral and caudal fins (Figs. 9, 10). In contrast, the black area in E. philippinus nuptial males is restricted to the lower half of the head (Fig. 13).

Comparative material examined. Enneapterygius similis: ANSP 72062, holotype of Enneapterygius fuligicauda, male, 18.2 mm SL, Aguni-jima island, Okinawa Islands, Japan, 27 July 1945, E. Tinkham. Enneapterygius tutuilae: 2 specimens (17.2–20.9 mm SL): FMNH 17494, holotype of Enneapterygius waigiensis, male, 17.2 mm SL, southern coast of Waigeo island, Indonesia; ZMA 112.506, lectotype of Tripterygium callionymi, 20.9 mm SL, Sanana Bay, east coast of Sulawesi island, Indonesia, 13–14 Sept. 1899, M. Weber. Enneapterygius unimaculatus: 5 specimens (18.7–26.9 mm SL): USNM 51802, holotype of Enneapterygius cerasinus, female, 19.6 mm SL, Apia, Upolu island, 1902, D. Jordan & V. Kellogg; ZMA 112.502, paralectotype of Tripterygium callionymi, male, 26.9 mm SL, Celebes Sea, Indonesia, M. Weber; ZMA 112.503, 1 of 2 paralectotypes of Tripterygium callionymi, male, 23.6 mm SL, east coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, 13–14 Sept. 1899, M. Weber; ZMA 112.504, paralectotype of Tripterygium callionymi, male, 18.7 mm SL, south island near Salayer Island, Indonesia, 26 Sept. 1899, M. Weber; ZMA 112.505, paralectotype of Tripterygium callionymi, male, 27.3 mm SL, Banda Sea, Indonesia, M. Weber.