Aulacocephalus temminckii Bleeker, 1855

Aulacocephalus temminckii Bleeker, 1855

Fig. 2 B View Figure 2

Aulacocephalus temminckii Bleeker, 1855. — Bleeker (1855): 12 (type locality Nagasaki, Japan). — Randall et al. (1971): 173 [Natal coast ( South Africa), Mauritius, Thailand, northeast China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Kermadec Islands]. — Randall (1982): 201 (Rapa, French Polynesia). — Katayama (1984): 139 (southern Japan). — Francis (1993): 160 (Eastern Australia, Norfolk Island, New Zealand, Kermadec Islands). — Goren and Dor (1994): 24 (Red Sea). — Kuiter (1997): 122 ( Australia). — Fricke (1999): 210 (Mascarene Islands). — Hutchins (2001): 30 (Western Australia). — Senou (2002): 726 ( Japan). — Randall et al. (2005): 119 ( Marshall Islands). — Kuiter and Debelius (2007): 313 ( South Africa). — Khalaf and Zajonz (2007): 427 (Gulf of Aqaba). — Fricke et al. (2009): 43 ( La Réunion, Mauritius, and Comores). — Randall and Schraml (2010): 170 ( Japan; Norfolk Island). — Bos and Gumanao (2013): 3 ( Philippines). — Duffy and Ahyong (2015): 113 ( Australia, New Zealand). — Stewart (2015): 1201 ( New Zealand). — Golani and Fricke (2018): 60 (Red Sea). — Akhilesh et al. (2021): 49 ( India). — Heemstra (2022): 79 (western Indian Ocean). View in CoL

Material examined.

LBRC-F 367, 190.7 mm SL, LBRC-F 402, 152.1 mm SL, off Lembeh Island , hook and line, 100–150 m (both purchased at Girian Fish Market, Bitung, northern Sulawesi, T. Peristiwady, 18 August and 13 December 2008, respectively) .

Description.

Dorsal fin with 9 spines and 12 soft rays, fourth spine longest, its length 3.2–3.3 in HL, first and last dorsal spines subequal, their lengths about half length of fourth spine; anal fin with 3 spines and 9 soft rays, third or fourth ray longest, its length 2.5–2.8 in HL; pectoral fin with 15 rays; pored lateral-line scales 74–79; scales above lateral line 13; scales below lateral line 44; gill rakers on upper limb of first gill arch 9, lower limb 18, total 27; body depth 2.8–2.9 in SL; body width behind gill opening 2.8–3.0 in body depth; head length 2.4–2.5 in SL; snout relatively long, its length 6.6–6.9 in HL; mouth slightly oblique; pre-opercle coarsely serrated; subopercle and interopercle serrated; interorbital width 6.6–7.6 in HL; origin of pelvic fin just below origin of pectoral fin, pelvic fin short, its length 9.2–9.7 in HL, posterior tip not reaching anus when depressed; caudal peduncle depth 3.1–3.2 in HL; caudal peduncle length 2.1–2.3 in HL; head (except snout, interorbital, and maxillary) and body covered with ctenoid scales.

Color when fresh.

Body bluish grey, a bright yellow band running from near snout tip through eye, along upper part of back and dorsal fin base to upper and lower bases of caudal fin; a yellow streak along upper margin of upper jaw; soft portions of median fins with blackish rays and translucent membranes; pectoral and pelvic fin membranes translucent (Fig. 2 B View Figure 2 ).

Remarks.

The following diagnostic features of the presently reported specimens closely matched those of A. temminckii given by Heemstra and Randall (1999): for example, dorsal fin single, with 9 spines and 12 soft rays, last two spines subequal; anal fin with 3 spines and 9 soft rays; body depth less than head length 2.8–2.9 in SL; caudal fin rounded; pelvic fin short, its posterior tip not reaching anus when depressed; posterior margin of pre-opercle, subopercle and interorpercle serrated; head and body scales ctenoid; body bluish-grey, with a bright yellow band from near front of upper jaw through eye, along upper part of back and dorsal fin base to caudal fin base.

There appears to be variation in the coloration of the posterior end of the yellow band running along the upper part of the body. Specimens of A. temminckii collected from the Red Sea and Japanese waters exhibit the band terminating at the upper caudal fin base, accompanied by a yellow blotch on the lower caudal fin base (see Khalaf and Zajonz 2007: 427; Randall and Schraml 2010: fig. 4). In contrast, specimens from Norfolk Island show the band ending at the upper caudal fin base without a blotch on the lower base (see Randall and Schraml 2010: fig. 5). Meanwhile, specimens from the Philippines and Lembeh Island waters show the band extending posteriorly to form a vertical band across both the upper and lower bases of the caudal fin (see Bos and Gumanao 2013: fig. 4 A; this study: Fig. 2 B View Figure 2 ).

Although A. temminckii is widely distributed in the Red Sea and Indo – west Pacific, except for the Hawaiian Islands (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ); it is relatively rare in collections ( Baldwin and Smith 1998). The distribution of A. temminckii in Southeast Asia was previously reported as limited to the Philippines ( Bos and Gumanao 2013), the presently reported specimens being the first recorded from Indonesia.

Aulacocephalus temminckii is common in subtropical waters between 20 and 36 ° N or S ( Randall et al. 1971) but has not previously been reported in equatorial waters ( Randall 1982). Prior to the presently reported account, the lowest latitudes reported for A. temminckii were 11 ° N (Port Blair, Andaman Islands) ( Rangarajan 1969) and 11 ° S ( Comoros, eastern Africa) ( Fricke et al. 2009), considered as evidence of an anti-equatorial distribution ( Randall 1982; Springer 1982; Fricke et al. 2009). However, Bos and Gumanao (2013) reported the first record of the species from the Philippines, based on a specimen collected at Peñaplata Public Market, southern Mindanao (caught latitude ca. 7 ° N in Samal Island, Davao Gulf). The presently reported specimen, collected off Lembeh Island (latitude 1.4 ° N) indicates that the anti-equatorial distribution, recognized by Randall (1982), Springer (1982), and Fricke et al. (2009), is no longer valid.