A checklist of ponyfishes (Teleostei, Leiognathidae) from Miyazaki Prefecture, east coast of Kyushu, southern Japan, with range extensions of three tropical species

By

Miki, Ryohei
Murase, Atsunobu
Wada, Masaaki

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2018-2-16

Original Publication

Check list : journal of species lists and distribution

Volume

14

Series / Issue

Issue: 1

Pages

243--255

Subjects

Distribution , Gazza minuta , Kadogawa Bay , Kuroshio Current , Leiognathus equulus , Leiognathus fasciatus , new , record

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

[São Paulo, Brazil] Luís Felipe Toledo 2005-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15560/14.1.243

 

Abstract

A checklist is presented of ponyfish species (Teleostei, Leiognathidae) from the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture, eastern coast of Kyushu, in the warm temperate zone of Japan and in areas influenced by the warm Kuroshio Current. Fish collection surveys (autumn, October 2016 to winter, early 2017) recorded 9 species of the family, including 1 collected by previous authors. Records of 3 species, Gazza minuta (Bloch, 1795), Leiognathus equulus (Forsskål, 1775), and Leiognathus fasciatus (Lacepède, 1803), extended their distributional ranges northward by ca 150–500 km. These 3 species and 3 others are distributed mainly in the tropical zone, and, combined with previous records of leiognathid fishes along the coasts influenced by the Kuroshio Current in southern Japan, this study shows a continuous distribution pattern of these tropical species, suggesting that the east coast of Kyushu is also influenced by this warm current. Diagnostic features, color images, and voucher specimen data are provided for each species.