Haffara Seabream

description

Description. Body fairly elongate, its depth 40.4 – 42.9 % of SL; head large, 31.4 – 34.4 % of SL; anterior profile of head somewhat convex, gracefully arched between dorsal-fin origin and snout tip, relatively sharp up to mouth; eye region slightly gibbous; posterior tip of maxilla reaching beyond vertical at middle of eye; upper jaw length 13.9 – 16.0 of SL, lower jaw slightly short and included; six incisors form teeth at front of upper and lower jaws; molars in five rows on each side of upper jaw, and three rows on each side of lower jaw, molars on each side of both jaws bluntly rounded, increasing in size gradually from front to back in each jaw, the posteriormost molar of each jaw significantly enlarged; gill rakers short; 4 – 5 transverse rows of scales on preopercle, 6 – 7 on cheek; interorbital entirely naked; dorsal spines strong, first spine shortest (4.5 – 6.1 % of SL), 4 th and 5 th spine usually longest (11.5 – 16.3 % of SL); first dorsal-fin soft ray longest but shorter than longest spine; first anal-fin spine (3.5 – 4.1 % of SL) much shorter than orbit diameter; 2 nd and 3 rd anal-fin spine subequal (10.6 – 12.0 % of SL); dorsal and anal-fins with scaly sheath along

The sparid fishes of Pakistan, with new distribution records

diagnosis

Diagnosis. Distinguished from its congeners by the following combination of characters: Dorsal-fin rays XI, 13; anal-fin rays III, 11; scale rows between fifth dorsal-fin spine base and the lateral line 5 ½, scale rows below the lateral line 11 ½ – 12 ½, scale rows between the dorsal-fin spine base and lateral line 5 ½ – 7 ½; pored lateral line scales 55 – 60; small blackish mark on first few lateral line scales, no scales on preopercular flange; gill rakers 13 – 16, on the lower limb 8 – 9; body depth 2.3 – 2.5 of SL; head and body silvery-black; pelvic, anal and caudal fins dusky gray to blackish, no yellow or golden longitudinal lines on the body.

The sparid fishes of Pakistan, with new distribution records

discussion

Remarks. Rhabdosargus haffara is similar in appearance to the newly described R. niger (Tanaka & Iwatsuki, 2013) from southwestern Kalimantan, Indonesia. However, Rhabdosargus niger, probably endemic only in western Pacific (according to Y. Iwatsuki) has more dense black body, higher body depth and lower counts of pored lateral line scales (ca. 45 % of SL and 53 – 55 in R. niger vs. slender body, ca. 42 % of SL, and higher scale counts, 55 – 60 pored lateral line scales in R. haffara), being distinguishable between them. Rhabdosargus haffara is very common from Middle East (Bauchot & Smith, 1983). Rhabdosargus haffara differs from R. sarba in having lower counts of 5 ½ scale rows between the fifth dorsalfin spine base and lateral line (vs. 6 ½ – 7 ½ in R. sarba, Table 1). R. haffara has silvery-black body without golden longitudinal lines and dusky gray coloration of pelvic and anal fins, while R. sarba possesses a silvery gold sheen body with yellow or golden longitudinal lines as well as yellow or yellowish coloration of pelvic and anal fins. Hoda (1988) mentioned R. haffara from Pakistan in his checklist but confirmation was lacking in the form of specimens.

The sparid fishes of Pakistan, with new distribution records

distribution

Distribution. Red Sea, Western Indian Ocean; Mediterranean Sea; Northwest Arabian Sea

The sparid fishes of Pakistan, with new distribution records