Awaous jayakari (Boulenger, 1888)

Esmaeili, Hamid Reza, Jufaili, Saud Al, Masoumi, Amir Hassan & Zarei, Fatah, 2022, Ichthyodiversity in southeastern Arabian Peninsula: Annotated checklist taxonomy, short description and distribution of Inland fishes of Oman, Zootaxa 5134 (4), pp. 451-503 : 480

13. Awaous jayakari (Boulenger, 1888) , Native

Fig. 34

Etymology: jayakari : named after Atmaram Sadashiv Grandin/Grovindin Jayakar (1844–1911), known also as Muscati, Indian naturalist, military physician, and colonial administrator, sent to Muscat by the Indian Medical Service.

Common name: Longnose Goby, Arabian Freshwater Goby, Jayakar’s Goby.

Taxonomy: Gobius jayakari was described by Boulenger [G. A.] 1888:663, Pl. 54 (fig. 2) [Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1887 (pt 4)] from a fresh water body near Muscat, Oman.

Syntypes: BMNH 1887.11.11.234-237 (4) .

Synonym: Gobius percivali Boulenger, 1901 , Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1901, v. 1 (pt 1): 152, fig. 9 ( Stream near Lahej [Al-houta], Yemen).

Short description: Awaous jayakari belongs to the A. commersoni group (western Indian Ocean speciesgroup), which is characterized by the absence of scales on the opercle and preopercle). It is clearly distinguished from its closely related species from Africa, A. aeneofuscus , by the following characters: breast and pectoral base naked, pectoral base with 1–3 scales in adults (vs. pectoral base usually fully scaled), and the first dorsal fin with small brown spots and no distinct black spot in young or adults (vs. with marbling of small black spots and blotches, especially pronounced posteriorly, but no distinct white-edged black spot).

Distribution: Oman (Wadi Shab and Darsit; Fig. 35 ), UAE, Yemen, Iran, Pakistan.

Remarks: It was already recorded from Wadi Shab and Darsit ( Oman Sea side). Here we record several other populations of this fish in the Wadis adjacent to the coastal area of the Arabian Sea, Dhofar region ( Fig. 35 ).

Examined material: ZM-CBSU: AJ1-24 , 45 , Oman: Dar Sait , 23°36ʹ45ʹʹN, 58°32ʹ41ʹʹE, S.M. Al-Jufaili .

Figures

FIGURE 34. Awaous jayakari, Oman: Mugseil, a new locality record.

FIGURE 35. Distribution map of Awaous jayakari in Oman with four new locality records in the Wadis adjacent to the coastal area of the Arabian Sea. Pink: Southwestern Arabian Coast, green: Oman Mountains, and yellow: Arabian Interior.