New species of hardyhead from Irian Jaya 
329 
in the whole Australian mainland - that is five 
species in each country. However, there are greater 
differences between the new species C. fistularis 
(see above) and the other members of the C. 
stercusmuscarum group from Papua New Guinea/ 
Irian Jaya (Crowley and Ivantsoff 1992) than there 
are between all Australian species of this group. 
The difference might be attributed to longer 
separation from the main C. stercusmuscarum 
ancestor (Crowley et al. 1991) or to increased 
ecological pressures. Until electrophoretic studies 
can be carried out on the new fish to assess its 
genetic relationships with other members of the 
group, the answer to the question of its marked 
differences must remain unknown. 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 
We would like to thank Ms Barbara Duckworth 
for her line drawing of the holotype. Ms Jenny 
Norman was most helpful with the photographic 
preparation of the drawings. This is publication 
No.178 of the Research Unit for Biodiversity and 
Bioresources within the School of Biological 
Sciences at Macquarie University. 
REFERENCES 
Crowley, L.E.L.M. (1991). Biogeography and systematics 
of the endemic freshwater fish genus Craterocephalus 
(Family: Atherinidae). PhD Thesis, unpublished, 
Macquarie University, Sydney. 334pp. 
Crowley, L.E.L.M and W. Ivantsoff (1988). A new 
species of Australian Craterocephalus (Pisces: 
Atherinidae) and redescription of four other species. 
Records of the Western Australian Museum, 14: 151- 
169. 
Crowley, L.E.L.M and W. Ivantsoff (1992). Redefinition 
of the freshwater fish genus, Craterocephalus 
(Teleosteii: Atherinidae) of Australia and New 
Guinea with an analysis of three species. 
Ichthyological Exploration of Freshzvaters, 3: 273-287. 
Crowley, L.E.L.M., Ivantsoff, W. and G.R. Allen (1991). 
Freshwater fishes of the genus Craterocephalus 
(Atherinidae) from the southern drainages of Papua 
New Guinea and Irian Jaya with special reference to 
Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum stercusmuscarum 
from Australia. Records of the Western Australian 
Museum, 15:33-52. 
Ivantsoff, W., Crowley, L.E.L.M. and G.R. Allen (1987). 
Description of a new species of freshwater 
hardyhead, Craterocephalus kailolae (Pisces: 
Atherinidae) from Safia, northeastern Papua New 
Guinea. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South 
Wales, 109, (1986): 331-337. 
Taylor, W.R. (1967). Outline of a method of clearing 
tissues with pancreatic enzyme and staining bones of 
small vertebrates. Turtox Neivs 45(12): 308-309. 
Manuscript received 24 April 1995; accepted 17 July 1995. 
