First record of the dotted grouper Epinephelus epistictus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1843) (Perciformes, Serranidae) in Malaysia

By

Du, Jianguo.
Loh, Kar-Hoe
Then, Amy Yee-Hui
Zheng, Xinqing
Peristiwady, Teguh
Rizman-Idid, Mohammed
Man, Alias Bin

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2019

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

861

Pages

107-118

Subjects

DNA barcoding , new record , otolith aspect ratio , phylogenetic and genetic diversity , taxonomy

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.861.34043

 

Abstract

Five specimens of Epinephelusepistictus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1843) were collected from a major landing site located on the west coast of Peninsula Malaysia during a fish faunal survey on 23 August 2017. The present study extends the distribution range of E.epistictus southwards from Andaman Sea to the Strait of Malacca. Species identification was confirmed by colour pattern and DNA barcoding (567 bp of cytochrome C oxidase I) of all E.epistictus specimens and nine closely related Epinephelus species. The interspecies genetic distance ranged from 0.002–0.245. This study also presents, for the first time for Malaysia, data on length-weight relationships and otolith measurements. It contributes to a better understanding of taxonomy, and phylogenetic and genetic diversity of E.epistictus.