Neoarius Castelnau, 1878

Marceniuk, Alexandre Pires, Oliveira, Claudio & Ferraris Jr, Carl J., 2024, A new classification of the family Ariidae (Osteichthyes: Ostariophysi: Siluriformes) based on combined analyses of morphological and molecular data, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 200 (2), pp. 426-476 : 470-471

Neoarius Castelnau, 1878

BI 0.74

( Figs 1–2 , 48 )

Type species: Arius curtisii Castelnau, 1878 .

Diagnosis

Mesethmoid median portion moderately wide (2, 2> 1); pterotic mesial border with parieto-supraoccipital longer than anterior border with sphenotic (36, 0> 1); anterior process of first hypobranchial in middle of bone (174, 0> 1).

Ambiguous optimization: Lateral horn of lateral ethmoid compressed and spatulate (11, 0> 1); one-half or less of interopercle posterior part contacting ventral margin of opercle (131, 1> 0); Müllerian ramus distal one-third markedly curved (208, 1> 2).

Included species

Neoarius berneyi Whitley, 1941

Neoarius graeffei Kner & Steindachner, 1867

Neoarius aff. graeffei sp 1

Neoarius aff. graeffei sp 2

Neoarius hainesi Kailola, 2000

Neoarius midgleyi Kailola & Pierce, 1988

Neoarius pectoralis Kailola, 2000 * sedis mutabilis.

Habitat and distribution: Fresh, brackish, and marine waters, southern New Guinea and Australia ( Fig. 38 ).

Remarks

The MP and BI analyses support the monophyly of Neoarius in contrast to previous morphological studies, which treated the group as asynonymof Ariopsis ( Kailola2004) orasavalidgenus ( Marceniuk and Menezes 2007, Marceniuk et al. 2012). This study supports the inclusion of Neoarius midgleyi and two currently unnamed species into the genus (Betancur-R. 2009) and renders Amissidens (type species: Arius hainesi Kailola, 2000 ) into synonymy.

Figures

Figure 1. MP analysis.Subfamilies (SF) Galeichthyinae (pink), Bagreinae (bright blue), and Ariinae (dark blue). Tribe (T) Ariini (blue), Cathopsini (orange), Genidentini tribe nov. (brown), and Sciadeini tribe nov. (light green).Subtribe (ST) Ariina (light blue) and Doiichthyina (green). Incertae sedis taxa (IS) (red). Numbers over branches correspond to the bootstrap support.

Figure 2. ML analysis. Subfamilies (SF) Galeichthyinae (pink), Bagreinae (bright blue), and Ariinae (dark blue). Tribe (T) Ariini (blue), Cathopsini (orange), Genidentini tribe nov. (brown), and Sciadeini tribe nov. (light green). Subtribe (ST) Ariina (light blue) and Doiichthyina (green). Incertae sedis taxa (IS) (red). Numbers over branches correspond to the bootstrap support.

Figure 38. Representative skulls, in dorsal view, and distribution of the subtribe Doiichthyina.A, Brustiarius nox, AUM 47488. B, Paracinetodus carinatus, AUM 47550.C, Cochlefelis spatula, AUM 50296. D, Nedystoma dayi, AUM 47500. E, Aceroichthys dioctes, AUM 47507. F, Pachyula crassilabris, AUM 47509. G, Pararius proximus, AUM 47486.H, Potamosilurus velutinus, AUM 47489.* marine, ** brackish waters, *** freshwater.

Figure 48. Neoarius graeffei, MNHN B-0693 (senior synonym of Arius curtisii), southern New Guinea and northern Australia, type species of the genus.