40 



Fishery Bulletin 92(1), 1994 



vae («=79) (Appendix Tables 1 and 2). Larvae from 

 GCRL and Freeport-McMoRan collections also oc- 

 curred primarily between July and September, but 

 collection data are not available (e.g., total number 

 of stations sampled and extent of sampling area). 



Discussion 



The developmental morphology of tripletail larvae 

 from the Gulf generally agrees with limited infor- 

 mation provided by Uchida et al. ( 1958) and Johnson 

 (1984). Larval tripletail are characterized by Da 

 vaulted, median supraoccipital crest with spines 

 along the leading edge; 2) precocious, heavily pig- 

 mented pelvic fins; and 3) large preopercular spines 

 (Uchida et al., 1958; Johnson, 1984; this study). The 

 supraoccipital crest is resorbed by 15.0-16.0 mm SL 

 in Gulf specimens (this study) and by 17.5 mm TL 

 (probably about 16.0 mm SL) off Japan (Uchida et 

 al., 1958). Johnson (1984) described the surface of 

 the frontal and supraoccipital bones of tripletail 

 larvae as rugose. We would characterize these bones 



as having a "waffled" appearance rather than an 

 elevated one, as implied by rugose (Fig. 2). Regard- 

 less, this modification is found in relatively few 

 other taxa (Johnson, 1984). Sequence of fin comple- 

 tion in larval tripletail is Pg-Dj-Dg-A-Pj and is 

 unlike the six patterns described by Johnson (1984). 

 The third anal spine is the last dorsal- or anal-fin 

 element to form. The dark band of pigment extend- 

 ing backward from above and below the orbit in 

 10.0-mm larvae is present at 8.3 mm SL (10.6 mm 

 TL) off Japan (Uchida et al., 1958) and in juveniles 

 and adults (Gudger, 1931; Breder, 1949). We did not 

 find the nasal spine noted by Uchida et al. (1958). 

 The 5.1-mm TL specimen listed as L. surinamensis 

 by Konishi (1988) lacks a supraoccipital crest and 

 precocious pelvics, and it has a small, multi-serrate 

 supraorbital ridge rather than the single supraor- 

 bital spine we found. Thus, we believe that Konishi's 

 5.1-mm TL specimen is not L. surinamensis. 



Because tripletail have a cosmopolitan distribu- 

 tion, their larvae may be confused with many taxa. 

 Larval tripletail resemble larvae of caproids, some 

 carangids, cepolids, drepaneids, ephippids, leiog- 



