RESEARCH ARTICLE

Meiacanthus solomon, a new fangblenny (Teleostei: Blenniidae) from the Solomon Islands, with a redescription and new records of M. limbatus

William F. Smith-Vaniz & Gerald R. Allen

Abstract

Meiacanthus solomon sp. nov. (Teleostei: Blenniidae) is described on the basis of the holotype (27.8 mm SL) collected in 60-65 m from the Solomon Islands. The new species is characterized by the following combination of characters: a single, dark, mid-lateral stripe extending from the snout, slightly onto the dorsal part of the pectoral-fin base, and terminating at the base of the caudal fin, with white immediately above and below the stripe in life, and 13 segmented anal-fin rays. It differs from the other similar dark-striped species, including M. abruptus, M. geminatus, M. luteus, M. vicinus, and M. vittatus, by a combination of color pattern features and fin-ray counts. In addition, M. limbatus is redescribed on the basis of recent collections from Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. This fangblenny differs from all others in having a narrow black stripe along the base of the anal fin in adults. In view of a previous misidentification, a partial redescription of the species is provided.