Gazza achlamys, Jordan & Starks, 1917

Abraham, K. J., Joshi, K. K. & Murty, V. S. R., 2011, Taxonomy of the fishes of the family Leiognathidae (Pisces, Teleostei) from the West coast of India, Zootaxa 2886 (1), pp. 1-18 : 16-17

16. Gazza achlamys Jordan and Starks, 1917

(Plate II, Fig. 8; Tables 1 –2)

Gazza achlamys Jordan & Starks, 1917, Ann. Car. Mus., 11: 446, pl.45.

Material examined. 5 specimens of 82–110 mm

Description. D.VIII, 16; P. ii, 13, ii; V. I, 5; A. III, 14; C. 15. Ll. 59–61.

As percent of standard length: Total length 129.55–134.18 (131.70); fork length 115.12–120.25 (117.09); predorsal 39.77–41.98 (40.64); preanal 50.62–52.33 (51.30); dorsal base 51.16–54.43 (52.33); anal base 39.77–44.30 (41.91); head 31.82–34.18; dorsal height 20.78; anal height 17.05–20.93 (19.18); pectoral 18.18–19.77 (18.73); depth 46.59–49.37 (47.71).

As percent of head length: Snout 24.00–28.57 (25.88); eye 35.71–39.29 (37.01); head height 95.59–100.00 (94.89).

Body oval, somewhat compressed and deep. Dorsal and ventral profiles equally convex. The dorsal profile shows a slight concavity over the front border of the eye. Snout pointed. Mouth large, lips broad and thick. Mouth when protracted forms a horizontal tube. Gape of mouth oblique and opposite the middle of the eye. Mandibles almost straight, ascending with an angle of about 50–60 o. A band of small villiform teeth on each side and a pair of symphysial canines on the upper jaw, lower jaw having a series of teeth on the sides, getting bigger when going forward, with a pair of large canine teeth at the symphysis, with a gap between them to receive the upper canines. Two small supraorbital spines present opposite the front border of eye. Pre-operculum with its lower margin finely serrated. Lateral line convex from the origin and runs parallel to the dorsal profile extending posteriorly up to the base of the caudal fin. Ventrals with axillary scales and tip of the ventrals do not reach the origin of the anals. Caudal deeply forked. Ventrolateral lobes of light organs hypertrophied.

Color. Body silvery, back grayish, with dark irregular marks or circles, extending to little beyond lateral line, which often disappear on preservation. Membrane of the spinous dorsal black in its distal portion. Snout tip dotted gray. Edge of soft dorsal also gray. Inner side of the pectoral fin dotted black and dark pigment spots present along the edge of the ventral half of the gill opening, covered by the opercular flap. Caudal dusky at its posterior margin. Minute black dots all over the ventral half of the body.

Distribution. Very rare in Indian waters with only stray specimens reported. It is reported from the Great Nicobar Island ( Rani Singh and Talwar 1978b) and known to occur off southern India. It is reported from off Cochin for the first time in the present study.