RESEARCH ARTICLE
Description of five new species
of marine gobies (Teleostei: Gobiidae) of the genus
Grallenia from the tropical western Pacific
Ocean
Gerald R. Allen & Mark V.
Erdmann
Abstract
Five new species belonging
to the gobiid fish genus Grallenia of the tropical
western Pacific Ocean are described from sand-bottom
habitats. G. compta n. sp. (11 specimens, 14.9-17.3
mm SL) from Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea and
G. rubrilineata n. sp. (81 specimens, 8.8-15.8
mm SL) from Luzon, Philippines share a suite of features
that comprises an absence of cephalic sensory-canal
pores, a rectangular first dorsal fin without a filamentous
extension of the first spine, and the anterior and
posterior scales separated by a scaleless gap, with
15-22 longitudinal scales in the posterior series.
The two species differ from each other in dorsal-
and anal fin-ray counts (8-9 for G. compta
n. sp. vs. 9-11, usually 10, for G. rubrilineata
n. sp.), scalation patterns, and coloration. A third
new species, Grallenia dimorpha n. sp. (34
specimens, 9.8-16.7 mm SL) from Papua New Guinea
is similar, except it has a continuous series of longitudinal
scales without a gap, and females possess a triangular
first dorsal fin featuring a filamentous extension
of the first spine. The last two species, Grallenia
lauensis n. sp. (two females, 11.1-11.4 mm
SL) and G. solomonensis n. sp. (three females,
11.4-12.5 mm SL), are described from Fiji and
the Solomon Islands, respectively. They exhibit similar
diagnostic features including the presence of cephalic
sensory-canal pores, usually 7 segmented dorsal- and
anal-fin rays, and most body scales restricted to
the caudal peduncle. Grallenia solomonensis
n. sp. differs from G. lauensis n. sp. in having
several mid-lateral scales immediately behind the
pectoral-fin base (vs. none), 16 (vs. 15) pectoral-fin
rays, pelvic-fin rays with 2-3 branch points
(vs. a single point), and a truncate (vs. slightly
emarginate) caudal fin. An additional 33 non-type
specimens, 7.0-15.6 mm SL, from Australia (southern
Great Barrier Reef and northwestern Coral Sea) are
provisionally identified as G. lauensis n.
sp. However, at least some Australian specimens differ
slightly in possessing branched segmented dorsal-fin
rays and pelvic-fin rays with more than one branch
point. Although fins are damaged in most specimens,
two Australian males exhibit a long, filamentous first
dorsal-fin spine.
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CITATION:
Allen, G.R. & Erdmann,
M.V. (2017) Description of five new species of marine
gobies (Teleostei: Gobiidae) of the genus Grallenia
from the tropical western Pacific Ocean. Journal
of the Ocean Science Foundation, 27, 20-47.
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.842879
publication date: 16 August
2017
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