Branchiostegus sanae, a new species of deepwater tilefish (Eupercaria, Branchiostegidae) from the South China Sea

By

Huang, Haochen
Chen, Jing-Xuan
Ke, Zhixin
Zhang, Chi

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2025

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

1227

Pages

129--142

Subjects

Bottom fish , Hainan , Malacanthidae , Phylogeny , taxonomy

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1227.130512

 

Abstract

A new species of deepwater tilefish, Branchiostegus sanaesp. nov., is described based on five specimens collected from the area between the Xisha Islands and Hainan Island, China. This species can be distinguished from congeners by its unique cheek marker and a combination of characteristics. Among the tilefish species known to be distributed in the South China Sea, this species is the only one with vertical stripes on the body. Based on the COI, CytB, and 12S sequences, a maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree shows that the B. sanaesp. nov. forms a separate clade and is the sister group to the clade consisting of B. sawakinensis, B. albus, B. argentatus, B. biendong, B. japonicus, B. auratus, and B. okinawaensis. A key to the genus Branchiostegus is also compiled.