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Issue: Vol. 5814 No. 3: 22 May 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-05-22
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5814.3.4
Page range: 377-393
Abstract views: 34
PDF downloaded: 1

Redescription of Pterygotrigla guezei Fourmanoir, 1963 (Perciformes, Triglidae, Pterygotriglinae), a senior synonym of Pterygotrigla cajorarori Richards & Yato, 2012

Oceanographic Institute of Moçambique (INOM); 389. Box 4603 Maputo; Moçambique.
National Research Foundation—South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity; Makhanda 6140; South Africa.
Tanzania Fisheries Research Institute (TAFIRI); P.O. Box 9750 Dar Es Salaam; Tanzania.
National Research Foundation—South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity; Makhanda 6140; South Africa.
National Research Foundation—South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity; Makhanda 6140; South Africa.
Pisces Taxonomy morphology Tanzania Western Indian Ocean phylogenetic analysis R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen trawl surveys

Abstract

Pterygotrigla guezei Fourmanoir, 1963, a triglid fish of the subgenus Pterygotrigla, was previously known only from islands in the Western Indian Ocean. Additional specimens of P. guezei were collected during surveys conducted by the research vessel Dr. Fridtjof Nansen off Mozambique and Tanzania in 2023. This material extends the known distribution of the species westward to the eastern coast of Africa and enables comparison of specimens from the Western Indian Ocean with those of Pterygotrigla cajorarori Richards & Yato, 2012 from the Philippines (type locality), using both morphological and genetic data. Previously, P. guezei had been distinguished from other members of the subgenus by the presence of 11 membranous pectoral-fin rays rather than 12. However, examination of the holotype and additional specimens from the Western Indian Ocean shows that all specimens possess 12 pectoral-fin rays. Comparison of type material of P. guezei and P. cajorarori, together with additional specimens from the Western Indian Ocean, the Philippines, and Australia reveal no consistent differences between the two species. This conclusion is supported by a phylogenetic analysis of the COI gene region, in which specimens from both areas form a single lineage, supporting their conspecificity, making P. cajorarori a junior synonym of P. guezei. The latter species is redescribed here, including its incorporation into a phylogenetic framework for the first time.

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How to Cite

Samucidine, K.E., Bogorodsky, S.V., Matiku, P., Matcher, G. & Bills, R. (2026) Redescription of Pterygotrigla guezei Fourmanoir, 1963 (Perciformes, Triglidae, Pterygotriglinae), a senior synonym of Pterygotrigla cajorarori Richards & Yato, 2012. Zootaxa, 5814 (3), 377–393. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5814.3.4