identifier	taxonID	type	CVterm	format	language	title	description	additionalInformationURL	UsageTerms	rights	Owner	contributor	creator	bibliographicCitation
5768066BAF2FFFCAFF1F3AF96D6EFDC1.text	5768066BAF2FFFCAFF1F3AF96D6EFDC1.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Gnathophis ajithi Kodeeswaran & Karmovskaya 2025	<div><p>Gnathophis ajithi sp. nov.</p><p>(Figures 1, 2, 3A, 4A, Table 1)</p><p>Holotype. IO /OV/ ANG/00054, 343 mm TL, off <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=75.55&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=8.95" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 75.55/lat 8.95)">Kollam</a>, India, Arabian Sea (8° 57’ N; 75° 33’ E), 450 m depth, bottom trawl, P. Kodeeswaran, 16 January 2024.</p><p>Paratypes. Five specimens, 347–484 mm TL: IO / OV/ ANG/00057, 410–415, 2 specimens, collected together with the holotype; ZSI/ EBRC / F 18778, 347 mm TL, 1 specimen, off <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=75.53333&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=8.666667" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 75.53333/lat 8.666667)">Kollam</a>, India, Arabian Sea (8° 40’ N; 75° 32’ E), 264 m depth, bottom trawl, P. Kodeeswaran, 16 January 2024; ZSI/ EBRC / F 18777, 435 mm TL, 1 specimen, off Mangalore, India, <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=74.2&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=12.6" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 74.2/lat 12.6)">Arabian Sea</a> (12°36’ N 74°12’ E), 350 m depth, bottom trawl, P. Kodeeswaran, 16 January 2024; ZSI/ EBRC / F 18779 , 484 mm TL, 1 specimen, collected together with the holotype.</p><p>Diagnosis. A moderate size species of the genus Gnathophis differs from its congeners in having the following combination of characters: elevated pores above adpressed pectoral fin; small eye, 15.7–17.7% HL; lateral-line pores before anus 27–33; total vertebrae 124 (122–126); vertebrae formula: 8–10/28–34/33–38/122–126; stomach grey to black.</p><p>Description. Measurements in percentage of TL and HL, and counts data are given in Table 1. Body moderately elongate, anterior portion cylindrical in cross section, following posterior portion more compressed; tail tip somewhat attenuate; anus just anterior to mid-body length, length 2.6 (2.3–2.7) times in TL. Dorsal-fin origin at level of slightly in front of mid-length of pectoral fin length, confluent with caudal and anal fins. Anal-fin origin just behind anus. Pectoral fin well-developed with narrow base and pointed distally. Gill opening smaller than eye diameter, upper end of gill opening just below at lower edge of pectoral-fin base. Interbranchial much broader than gill opening and eye.</p><p>Head large, in comparison with less slender body, deepest at gill opening; snout moderate and not much pointed, length 1.5 (1.4–1.7) times eye diameter, slightly projecting beyond lower jaw; lower jaw longer than snout; fleshy tip of snout projecting anteriorly beyond intermaxillary tooth patch; rictus just anterior to mid-eye. Tubular anterior nostril at tip of snout, directed ventrally. Elliptical posterior nostril in front of mid-eye level, with a slightly raised rim.</p><p>Lateral-line pores complete, visible in front of anus, anterior part of lateral-line canal convex dorsally and curves smoothly downwards over the base of the pectoral fin, 2 nd and 7 th –8 th through 13 th –15 th pores elevated.</p><p>Head pores small; SO pores 6, the first (ethmoidal) pore and the second on ventral tip of snout, the third on dorsal side of snout, the fourth pore slightly larger just behind the third, the fifth above and anterior of eye and the sixth above and posterior edge of eye. IO pores 8, the first 4 pores along upper lip, the fifth behind rictus; 3 behind eye. Mandibular pores 7, six before rictus, and one after rictus; PO pores 2. ST pores 3.</p><p>Teeth small, pointed to blunt and curved backwards. Intermaxillary teeth in about 5 to 6 transverse rows with backward-curved teeth, connected to maxillary and vomerine teeth, anterior portion slightly exposed when mouth closed. Maxillary teeth in bands, anteriorly with 5 rows of pointed teeth, middle portion with 2 rows, inner teeth blunt and outer teeth pointed, posterior portion narrower with single row. Vomerine teeth blunt, form a long-elongated patch, in about 4 transverse rows, and terminate with two teeth posteriorly. Mandibular teeth in bands, anterior portion with 3–4 rows, and narrow posterior portion.</p><p>Swimbladder extends slightly beyond anus and stomach does not reach anus.</p><p>Colouration. Live colouration. Body dorsally olive-greenish and belly silvery-white. Bright silvery band runs parallel to and below lateral-line pores after anus, which becomes pale brownish posteriorly. Melanophores, pigment traces of leptocephalus, on ventral side of body from gill opening to tail tip, dense, tapering posteriorly. Dorsal and anal fins milky white with dark margin. Caudal fin dark and tail tip white. Pectoral fin translucent with greenish to dark patches at base and dorsal margin. Head slightly darker than body. Snout tip lime green, then a little darker. Back of head brownish-dark, supratemporal commissure lighter. Stomach grey to black and peritoneum slivery. Dorsal and ventral of lateral-line pores whitish. Gill-opening white. Eyes bright with dark pupil surrounded by golden iris. Colouration after preservation. Body becomes paler than fresh. Pectoral fin translucent.</p><p>Size. The largest specimen examined is 484 mm TL.</p><p>Distribution. Indian Ocean: off Kerala and off Karnataka, Arabian Sea. Known only from type specimens collected at depths of 264– 450 m.</p><p>Etymology. The species name ajithi is given in honor of the Indian marine biologist and Ph.D. guide of the first author, T. T. Ajith Kumar for his enormous contribution to marine biodiversity and conservation of marine livings.</p><p>Remarks. This species is similar to Australian species Gnathophis grahami Karmovskaya &amp; Paxton, 2000 by having elevated lateral-line pores above adpressed pectoral fin, overlapping vertebral counts, but readily differs in having fewer precaudal vertebrae (33–38 vs. 38–43 in G. grahami), fewer POM pores (7+2 vs. 8+3), smaller eye (15.7–17.7% HL and 58.6–70.4% SnL vs. 20.2–26.9% HL and 70.4–87.8% SnL). This species also has a similar total number of vertebrae and lateral-line preanal pores to Pacific species Gnathophis heterognathos (Bleeker, 1858) but is easily distinguished by its smaller eye size (15.7–17.7% HL vs. 18.5–26.7% HL), larger head (18.0–19.1% TL vs. 17.3–17.6% TL), longer predorsal length (19.4–20.7% TL vs. 17.7–18.9% TL), colour of peritoneum (silvery vs. pale with pigmented).</p><p>It is distinguished from such species as Gnathophis asanoi Karmovskaya, 2004, Gnathophis bracheatopos Smith &amp; Kanazawa, 1977, Gnathophis capensis (Kaup, 1856), Gnathophis ginanago (Asano, 1958), Gnathophis habenatus (Richardson, 1848), Gnathophis leptosomatus Karrer, 1983, Gnathophis longicauda (Ramsay &amp; Ogilby, 1888), Gnathophis neocaledoniensis Karmovskaya, 2004, Gnathophis parini Karmovskaya, 1990, and Gnathophis umbrellabius (Whitley, 1948) in having elevated lateral-line pores above pectoral fin (vs. not elevated in the species mentioned above).</p><p>Gnathophis ajithi differs from the species such as Gnathophis andriashevi Karmovskaya, 1990, Gnathophis bathytopos Smith &amp; Kanazawa, 1977, Gnathophis castlei Karmovskaya &amp; Paxton, 2000, Gnathophis codoniphorus Maul, 1972, Gnathophis johnsoni Prokofiev et al. 2025, Gnathophis mystax (Delaroche, 1809), Gnathophis tritos Smith &amp; Kanazawa, 1977, and Gnathophis xenica (Matsubara &amp; Ochiai, 1951) in having fewer total vertebrae (122–126 vs. 131–142 in G. andriashevi, 128–133 in G. bathytopos, 126–133 in G. castlei, 144 in G. codoniphorus, 130–134 in G. johnsoni, 134–141 in G. mystax, 136–138 in G. tritos, 151–157 in G. xenica). And the new species has more total number of vertebrae than Gnathophis heterolinea (Kotthaus, 1968) (122–126 vs. 120 in latter). Gnathophis ajithi differs from Gnathophis smithi Karmovskaya, 1990, in having fewer total vertebrae (122–126 vs. 127–135 in G. smithi), fewer precaudal vertebrae (33–38 vs. 44–47), fewer POM pores (7+2 vs. 8+3), smaller eye (15.7–17.7% HL vs. 19.9–25.1% HL), colour of peritoneum (silver vs. black).</p><p>Further, Gnathophis ajithi differs from Australian species (Karmovskaya &amp; Paxton 2000) such as Gnathophis macroporis in having fewer precaudal vertebrae (33–38 vs. 43–48), fewer POM pores (7+2 vs. 8+3), smaller eye (15.7–17.7% HL vs. 22.2–28.1% HL) and from Gnathophis melanocoelus in having fewer POM pores (7+2 vs. 8+3), smaller eye (15.7–17.7% HL vs. 22.5–25.6% HL), and from Gnathophis microps in having fewer precaudal vertebrae (33–38 vs. 39–41), fewer POM pores (7+2 vs. 8+2), shorter snout length (24.5–26.8% HL vs. 27.1–29.2% HL), swimbladder extends slightly beyond anus (vs. close to anus) and from Gnathophis nasutus in having smaller eye (15.7–17.7% HL vs. 18.6–27.1% HL), longer trunk (19.7–24.4% TL vs. 15.1–18.8% TL), head shorter than trunk, HL 74.7–96.1% PAL (vs. head longer than trunk, HL 102.6–129.6 % PAL), fewer POM pores (7+2 vs. 8+2), swimbladder extends slightly beyond anus (vs. end at anus or slightly beyond).</p></div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/5768066BAF2FFFCAFF1F3AF96D6EFDC1	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		MagnoliaPress via Plazi	Kodeeswaran, Paramasivam;Karmovskaya, Emma S.	Kodeeswaran, Paramasivam, Karmovskaya, Emma S. (2025): Three new species of the congrid eel genus Gnathophis (Anguilliformes: Congridae) from the Arabian Sea. Zootaxa 5725 (1): 89-105, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5725.1.3, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5725.1.3
5768066BAF29FFC4FF1F3D7D6AA8F965.text	5768066BAF29FFC4FF1F3D7D6AA8F965.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Gnathophis anilmohapatrai Kodeeswaran & Karmovskaya 2025	<div><p>Gnathophis anilmohapatrai sp. nov.</p><p>(Figures 3B, 4B, 5, 6, Table 1)</p><p>Holotype. IO /OV/ ANG/00055, 255 mm TL, off <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=75.53333&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=8.666667" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 75.53333/lat 8.666667)">Kollam</a>, India, Arabian Sea (8° 40’ N; 75° 32’ E), 264 m depth, bottom trawl, P. Kodeeswaran, 16 January 2024.</p><p>Paratypes. Eight specimens, 210–259 mm TL: IO /OV/ ANG/00058, 234–259 mm TL, 4 specimens; ZSI/ EBRC / F18780, 210– 241 mm TL, 4 specimens, collected together with the holotype.</p><p>Diagnosis. A moderate size species of the genus Gnathophis differs from its congeners in having the following combination of characters: lateral-line pores above pectoral fin not elevated, lateral-line pores before anus 36–40; total vertebrae 136 (133–138); vertebrae formula: 9–11/40–42/47–48/133–138; stomach pale.</p><p>Description. Measurements in percentage of TL and HL, and counts data are given in Table 1. Body moderately elongate, anterior portion cylindrical in cross section, following posterior more compressed; tip of tail somewhat attenuate; anus just anterior to mid-body length, length 2.5 (2.4–2.6) times in TL. Dorsal-fin origin at level of mid adpressed pectoral fin length, confluent with caudal and anal fins. Anal-fin origin immediately behind anus. Pectoral fin well-developed with narrow base and pointed distally. Gill opening much smaller than eye diameter, its upper portion reaching mid of pectoral-fin base. Interbranchial much broader than gill opening and eye.</p><p>Head large, in comparison with less slender body, deepest at gill opening; snout elongate and pointed, length 1.5 (1.1–1.5) times eye diameter, much projecting beyond lower jaw; lower jaw equal to or longer than snout; fleshy portion of snout tip projecting anteriorly beyond intermaxillary tooth patch; rictus just before posterior eye margin. Tubular anterior nostril at snout tip, directed ventro-laterally. Elliptical posterior nostril in front of mid-eye level, with slightly raised rim.</p><p>Lateral-line pores complete, evident before anus, anterior part of lateral-line canal convex dorsally and curves smoothly downwards over the base of the pectoral fin, and pores above pectoral fin not elevated.</p><p>Head pores small; SO pores 6, the first (ethmoidal) pore and the second on ventral tip of snout, the third on dorsal side of snout, the fourth slightly large just behind the third, the fifth above and anterior of eye, and the sixth pore above and posterior edge of eye. IO pores 8, the first 4 along upper lip, the fifth behind rictus; 3 behind eye. Mandibular pores 7, six before rictus, and one after rictus; PO pores 2. ST pores 3.</p><p>Teeth small, pointed to blunt and curved backwards. Intermaxillary in about 4 transverse rows with backward-curved teeth, connected to maxillary and vomerine teeth, anterior portion slightly exposed when mouth closed. Maxillary teeth in bands, anterior with 3–4 rows of pointed teeth, middle portion with 2 rows, inner teeth blunt and outer teeth pointed, posterior portion narrower with single row. Vomerine teeth blunt and form long elongated patch, in about 3 rows anteriorly, following 5 uniserial blunt teeth posteriorly. Mandibular teeth in bands, anterior portion with 3–4 rows, and narrow posterior portion.</p><p>Swimbladder shorter than stomach and stomach does not reach anus.</p><p>Colouration. Live colouration. Body olive greenish to pale, dorsally pale brown and ventrally whitish, pale line runs along lateral line, belly milky white. Ventral part of body without melanophore pigmentation. Dorsal and anal fins dark with pale white distally. Caudal fin dark and tail tip white. Pectoral fin translucent with dark base. Head colour about the same as body, silvery behind eye. Snout tip whitish, then a little darker. Supratemporal canal, anterior interorbital portion dark. Stomach pale, peritoneum silvery. Gill-opening white. Eyes bright with dark pupil surrounded by golden iris. Colouration after preservation. Body becomes paler or beige than fresh. Pectoral fin beige.</p><p>Size. The largest specimen examined is 259 mm TL.</p><p>Distribution. Indian Ocean: off Kerala, Arabian Sea. Known only from type specimens collected at the depths of 264 m.</p><p>Etymology. The species name anilmohapatrai is given in honor of the Indian ichthyologist Anil Mohapatra for his enormous contribution to anguilliform systematics in the Indian waters.</p><p>Remarks. Gnathophis anilmohapatrai differs from the Indian water congener, G. ajithi in having more total vertebrae and preanal pores (133–138 vs. 122–126 and 36–40 vs. 29–33), lateral-line pores above pectoral fin not elevated (vs. elevated), vomerine tooth patch short (vs. long), ventral body side without melanophore pigmentation (vs. with pigmentation). It differs from species such as G. andriashevi, G. bathytopos, G. castlei, G. cinctus, G. codoniphorus, G. grahami, G. heterognathos, G. heterolinea, G. johnsoni, G. macroporis, G. melanocoelus, G. microps, G. mystax, G. nasutus, and G. smithi by lateral-line pores above pectoral-fin not elevated (vs. lateral-line pores above pectoral-fin elevated in above mentioned species).</p><p>Gnathophis anilmohapatrai has a larger number of vertebrae i.e. 133–138, than species such as 125–130 in G. bracheotopos, 120–127 in G. habenatus, 118–123 in G. longicauda and fewer vertebrae than species such as 156 in G. leptosomatus, 142–145 in G. neocaledoniensis, 146–147 in G. parini and 151–157 in G. xenica . Further it differs from the species such as G. ginanago and G. umbrellabius in having fewer PO pores (2 vs. 3 in species mentioned above) and differs from G. asanoi and G. tritos in having more precaudal vertebrae (47–48 vs. 41–42 in G. asanoi, 42 in G. tritos). The new species differs from G. capensis in having longer pectoral fins (21.1–28.3 vs. 15–16 times in TL), and in stomach colour (pale vs. black) (Smith &amp; Heemstra 2022).</p></div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/5768066BAF29FFC4FF1F3D7D6AA8F965	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		MagnoliaPress via Plazi	Kodeeswaran, Paramasivam;Karmovskaya, Emma S.	Kodeeswaran, Paramasivam, Karmovskaya, Emma S. (2025): Three new species of the congrid eel genus Gnathophis (Anguilliformes: Congridae) from the Arabian Sea. Zootaxa 5725 (1): 89-105, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5725.1.3, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5725.1.3
5768066BAF27FFC0FF1F38146BFAF82C.text	5768066BAF27FFC0FF1F38146BFAF82C.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Gnathophis arabicus Kodeeswaran & Karmovskaya 2025	<div><p>Gnathophis arabicus sp. nov.</p><p>(Figures 3C, 4C, 7, 8, Table 1)</p><p>Holotype. IO /OV/ ANG/00056, 255 mm TL, off <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=70.666664&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=9.666667" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 70.666664/lat 9.666667)">Kollam</a>, India, Arabian Sea (9° 40’ N; 70° 40’ E), 600 m depth, bottom trawl, P. Kodeeswaran, 16 January 2024.</p><p>Paratypes. Five specimens, 190–245 mm TL: IO /OV/ ANG/00059, 240–245 mm TL, 2 specimens; ZSI/ EBRC / F18781, 211– 240 mm TL, 2 specimens, collected together with the holotype; ZSI/ EBRC / F 18782, 245 mm TL, 1</p><p>specimen, off <a href="https://tb.plazi.org/GgServer/search?materialsCitation.longitude=75.55&amp;materialsCitation.latitude=8.95" title="Search Plazi for locations around (long 75.55/lat 8.95)">Kollam</a>, India, Arabian Sea (8° 57’ N; 75° 33’ E), 450 m depth, bottom trawl, P. Kodeeswaran, 16 January 2024 .</p><p>Diagnosis. A slender species of the genus Gnathophis differs from its congeners in having the following combination of characters: lateral-line pores above pectoral fin not elevated, lateral-line pores before anus 36–41; SO pores 5, SO 5 absent, SO 6 present; total vertebrae 145 (143–146); vertebrae formula: 9–10/39–40/44–46/143– 146; stomach pale and black posteriorly.</p><p>Description. Measurements in percentage of TL and HL, and counts data are given in Table 1. Body moderately elongate, anterior portion cylindrical in cross section, posterior part more compressed; tail tip somewhat attenuate; anus just anterior to mid-body length, length 2.7 (2.6–2.8) times in TL. Dorsal-fin origin at level of mid adpressed pectoral fin length, confluent with caudal and anal fins. Anal-fin origin immediately behind anus. Pectoral-fin well-developed with narrow base and pointed distally. Gill opening much smaller than eye diameter, its upper portion reaching upper half of pectoral-fin base. Interbranchial smaller than eye and broader than gill opening.</p><p>Head large, in comparison with less slender body, deepest at gill opening; snout elongate and pointed, length 1.2 (1.0–1.4) times eye diameter, protruding significantly beyond lower jaw; lower jaw longer than snout; fleshy part of tip of snout projects forward beyond intermaxillary tooth patch; rictus just before posterior eye margin. Tubular anterior nostril at tip of snout, directed ventro-laterally. Elliptical posterior nostril in front of mid-eye level, with slightly raised rim.</p><p>Lateral-line pores complete, evident before anus, and anterior part of lateral-line canal convex dorsally and curves smoothly downwards over the base of the pectoral fin, and pores above pectoral fin not elevated.</p><p>Head pores small; SO pores 5, the first (ethmoidal) and the second pores on ventral side tip of snout, the third on dorsal of snout, the fourth slightly large just behind third, the fifth absent (SO 5), the sixth above and at posterior margin of eye. IO pores 7, first 4 along upper lip, the fifth behind rictus; 2 behind eye. Mandibular pores 7, six before rictus, and one after rictus; PO pores 2. ST pores 3.</p><p>Teeth small, pointed to blunt and curved backwards. Intermaxillary in about 4 transverse rows with backward-curved teeth, connected to maxillary, anterior portion slightly exposed when mouth closed. Maxillary teeth pointed and in bands, anterior with 3–5 rows of pointed teeth, middle portion with 2 rows, inner teeth blunt and outer teeth pointed, posterior portion narrower with single row. Vomerine teeth forming long elongated patch, in about 4 pointer rows anteriorly, irregular biserial in mid-portion and followed by 8 uniserial blunt teeth posteriorly. Mandibular teeth in bands, anterior portion with 3–4 rows, and narrow posterior portion.</p><p>Swimbladder ends before anus and stomach reaching up to and beyond anus.</p><p>Colouration. Live colouration. Body pale brownish to grey, belly silvery to pale, pale line run along lateral line, belly milky white. Ventral side of body without melanophore pigmentation. Doral and anal fin milky white with dark base. Caudal fin and tail dark. Pectoral fin translucent with dark tinge and base dark. Snout tip whitish, darker followingly. Supratemporal canal, interorbital and preopercular portion dark. Anterior mandibular pores (first three) rims with melanophore pigmentations. Stomach pale and black posteriorly, peritoneum silvery. Gill-opening white. Eyes bright with dark pupil surrounded by whitish iris. Colouration after preservation. Body becomes paler or beige than fresh. Pectoral fin beige.</p><p>Size. The largest specimen examined is 255 mm TL, the holotype.</p><p>Distribution. Indian Ocean: off Kerala, Arabian Sea. Known only from type specimens collected at the depths of 450– 600 m.</p><p>Etymology. The species name arabicus for the area in which the specimens were collected, the Arabian Sea.</p><p>Remarks. Gnathophis arabicus differs from its most of the congeners in having fewer SO and PO pores (5 vs. 6 and 2 vs. 3 in most of species other than mentioned below). This species differs from all the congeners mentioned above but it almost same as Indian water congener Gnathophis anilmohapatrai at first sight but differs in having more total vertebrae (143–146 vs. 133–138), fewer SO and IO pores (5 vs. 6 and 7 vs. 8), interbranchial smaller than eye, 14.6–18.8% HL (vs. interbranchial broader than eye, 17.9–25.5% HL). Gnathophis arabicus has similar characters to G. parini, such as a total number of vertebrae, colour of stomach, and cephalic pores counts but readily differs in having anterior dorsal-fin origin (at mid of adpressed pectoral vs. posterior to pectoral tip), fewer precaudal vertebrae (44–46 vs. 47–49), colouration of stomach (pale and black posteriorly vs. the whole stomach dark), stomach long reaching up to and beyond anus (vs. stomach not reaching anus) (Karmovskaya 1990). It differs from G. umbrellabius, and G. neocaledoniensis in having fewer SO and PO pores (5 vs. 6 and 2 vs. 3 in species mentioned above). Gnathophis arabicus shares similar cephalic pore counts with G. tritos but readily differs in having more total vertebrae (143–146 vs. 136–138). Further, it differs from G. leptosomatus in having fewer total vertebrae (143–146 vs. 156), longer head and trunk length (14.1–16.0% TL vs. 13.5% TL and 19.7–24.1% TL vs. 15.8% TL), shorter predorsal length (16.5–19.4% TL vs. 22.6% TL) and colouration of stomach (pale and black posteriorly vs. pale).</p><p>It differs from species such as G. ajithi, G. andriashevi, G. bathytopos, G. castlei, G. codoniphorus, G. grahami, G. heterognathos, G. heterolinea, G. johnsoni, G. macroporis, G. melanocoelus, G. microps, G. mystax, G. nasutus, and G. smithi by lateral-line pores above pectoral-fin not elevated (vs. lateral-line pores above pectoral-fin elevated in mentioned above species). Further, it differs from G. longicauda, G. habenatus, G. ginanago, G. asanoi, G. cinctus, G. bracheotopos, in having more total vertebrae (143–146 vs. 118–123 in G. longicauda, 122–124 in G. habenatus, 126–134 in G. ginanago, 139–140 in G. asanoi, 130–132 in G. cinctus, 125–130 in G. bracheotopos) and from G. xenica in having fewer total vertebrae (143–146 vs. 151–157 in G. xenica) and from G. mystax in having more precaudal vertebrae (44–46 vs. 33–34 in G. mystax).</p><p>Molecular analysis. Based on the molecular analysis using mitochondrial Cytochrome c Oxidase subunit 1 gene, the species Gnathophis ajithi is closely related to G. grahami with 2.5% genetic distance and followed by Pacific Ocean species G. heterognathos with 2.9%, N-West Atlantic species G. bathytopos with 6.5%, G. johnsoni with 6.5%, N-East Atlantic species G. mystax with 7.1%, S-East Indian species G. cinctus with 7.3%, G. melanocoelus and G. umbrellabius with 7.8%, S-East Atlantic species G. capensis with 9.2%. Gnathophis anilmohapatrai is genetically closely related to Gnathophis cinctus having a genetic distance 13.1% followed by Gnathophis johnsoni which has a genetic distance 13.4%, furthermore this species shows a distance of 11.6% with sequences submitted as Gnathophis sp. (MT323556 &amp; HM389414) and the species Gnathophis arabicus exhibits 11.7% with the sequence (HM389406) followed by 13.3–14.5% with the sequences (MW306760, MW306761, MT323465, MT323588, MT323628, MT323556).</p><p>The threshold value of intraspecific divergence within G. ajithi was 1%, while the minimum interspecific pairwise distances were 2.5% (17 substitutions) for G. grahami and 2.9% (20 substitutions) for G. heterognathos . These values exceed the intraspecific threshold, supporting the recognition of G. ajithi as a distinct species. Likewise, G. johnsoni showing a well-supported clade with G. cinctus, with a divergence of 1.81% (10 substitutions). Divergences among more distantly related taxa, such as G. bathytopos and G. mystax (0.72%), illustrate the range of interspecific variation within the genus. The divergences for G. ajithi (2.5% to 2.9%) fall within this range and are closer to the values separating G. bathytopos / mystax and G. johnsoni / cinctus . These findings confirm that G. ajithi is genetically distinct and supports its recognition as a separate species, consistent with the molecular thresholds and species-level separations in the genus.</p><p>The Median-joining haplotype network (Figure 9) clearly shows the genetic distinctions among Gnathophis species.It reveals well-defined, separate clusters for G. arabicus, G. ajithi, G.grahami, G.capensis, G. heterognathos, G. umbrellabius, G. melanocoelus, and G. longicauda, highlighting substantial species-level differences. However, sequences submitted as Gnathophis sp. formed two distinct cluster, one cluster (Hap_11, Hap_7, &amp; Hap_12) showed variable mutational steps with the species G. anilmohapatrai whereas another (Hap_19, Hap_20, &amp; Hap_21) showed closer lineage with the cluster of G. bathytopos . In contrast, some taxa, such as G. johnsoni and G. cinctus, as well as G. bathytopos and G. mystax, have haplotypes linked by only a few mutational steps. This close genetic connection indicates either recent divergence from a common ancestor, the persistence of ancestral haplotypes, or incomplete lineage sorting. The presence of shared or intermediate haplotypes (e.g., Hap_31) further supports the possibility of ancestral polymorphism. However, G. bathytopos and G. mystax showed overlapping cluster mainly Hap_49, Hap_47 (Italy), Hap_13, Hap_26 and Hap_25 (Atlantic), that depicts there is a possibility of lineage connectivity. These patterns are typical of recently diverged taxa and can complicate clear taxonomic distinctions.</p><p>This analysis confirms that Gnathophis is a genetically diverse genus, with most species displaying unique genetic signatures. However, some species have overlapping or closely related haplogroups that warrant further investigation. Based on both the haplotype network tree and the Maximum likelihood tree (Figure 10), all three new species form separate and distinct clades from their congeners’ sequences available at the public domain. This supports the status of all three species as new.</p></div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/5768066BAF27FFC0FF1F38146BFAF82C	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		MagnoliaPress via Plazi	Kodeeswaran, Paramasivam;Karmovskaya, Emma S.	Kodeeswaran, Paramasivam, Karmovskaya, Emma S. (2025): Three new species of the congrid eel genus Gnathophis (Anguilliformes: Congridae) from the Arabian Sea. Zootaxa 5725 (1): 89-105, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5725.1.3, URL: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5725.1.3
