Diplodus omanensis Bauchot & Bianchi, 1984

Siddiqui, Pirzada Jamal, Amir, Shabir Ali & Masroor, Rafaqat, 2014, The sparid fishes of Pakistan, with new distribution records, Zootaxa 3857 (1), pp. 71-100 : 84-85

Diplodus omanensis Bauchot & Bianchi, 1984

English Name: Oman Porgy

Local names: Kissi (Sindh); Tippuch (Balochistan) ( Figures 9 & 15 , Q; Table 1 )

Diplodus cervinus omanensis Bauchot & Bianchi, 1984: 103 , Fig. A ( Kuria Muria Bay, Arabian Sea).

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other Diplodus by the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin rays XI, 11–12; anal-fin rays III, 10; pored lateral line scales 52; scale rows above and below lateral line 9½ and 17½; scale rows between the fifth dorsal-fin spine base and lateral line 8(2 AS) and third anal-fin spine subequal; least infraorbital depth 8.5% of SL; five broad black bars on head and body; one on head through eyes and four on rest of the body.

Description. Counts and proportional measurements of Diplodus omanensis are shown in Table 1 . Head and body deep, its depth 37.2% of SL; head large, 37.5% of SL; dorsal profile of head moderately steep; scale rows 5 on cheek; mouth small and horizontal, the maxilla reaching to below anterior margin of eyes and completely hidden under suborbitals when mouth closed; gill rakers small and 14 in number, eight on lower arch; six pairs of projecting incisor teeth in upper jaw and four pairs in lower jaw; posterior part of jaw with three rows of small molars; first dorsal spine is smallest (4.5% of SL) while fourth (14.5% of SL) longest; first anal-fin spine short (4.8% of SL), 2nd and 3rd anal spines subequal (10% of SL); caudal fin forked; upper lobe of caudal fin is slightly longer than lower one; pectoral-fins reaching to anal spine ( Amir et al., 2013).

Color of fresh specimens. Head and body with silvery grayish to black tinge; five broad black bars from head to body, first one on head through eyes and four on body, first and second indistinctly bifurcated ventrally; two indistinct short narrow black bars ventrally in first silver interspace on body and one indistinct ventrally after second; snout partly grayish and black; margins of fins are also partly yellow and blackish, anal-fins are more blackish.

Remarks. Diplodus omanensis was first recorded from Pakistan by Amir et al. (2013). This species was initially considered to be a subspecies Diplodus cervinus omanensis , described from Oman. Diplodus omanensis was known to be endemic to Oman but its distribution range has been extended up to Iran and Pakistan. The other subspecies Diplodus cervinus hottentotus ( Smith, 1844) occurs only in southern Mozambique and South Africa ( Randall, 1995).

Figures

FIGURE 9. Diplodus omanensis, CEMB- P 2012 – 00077 (formerly MUFS 39722), 310 mm SL, WWFH, Karachi. Five transverse black bars from head to body.

FIGURE 15. Details of dentition (A-Y) and gill rakers (Z & Z 1) in species of family Sparidae from Pakistan; Acanthopagrus catenula, A) upper jaw & B) lower jaw; A. berda, C) upper jaw & D) lower jaw; A. arabicus, E) upper jaw & F) lower jaw; A. sheim, G) upper jaw & H) lower jaw; Sparidentex hasta, I) upper jaw & J) lower jaw; Sparidentex jamalensis., K) upper jaw & L) lower jaw; Crenidens indicus, M) upper jaw & N) lower jaw; Diplodus capensis, O) upper jaw & P) lower jaw; Q) upper and lower jaws of Diplodus omanensis; Rhabdosargus sarba, R) upper jaw & S) lower jaw; Rhabdosargus haffara, T) upper jaw & U) lower jaw; V) upper and lower jaws of Agryrops spinifer; W) upper and lower jaws of Cheimerius nufar; Pagellus affinis, X) upper jaw & Y) lower jaw; Z) Argyrops spinifer, showing comparatively small gill rakers; and Z 1) Cheimerius nufar, showing elongated fan-like gill rakers.