An updated checklist of Stomiiformes from Indian waters with nine new records

Abstract

Over the years as a part of many fishery surveys, considerable number of stomiiform fishes were collected by the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE) Research Vessel ‘Sagar Sampada’. The collection came from throughout the Indian EEZ and some from the western Indian Ocean. However, a systematic identification of these fishes had never been carried out prior to this paper. Thirty-four species were identified and it was found that eight species were new records to India and one to peninsular India. Among the records, two species, Photonectes paxtoni Flynn and Klepadlo, 2012 and Photonectes barnetti Klepadlo, 2011, are collected from the Indian Ocean for the first time. The paper provides a detailed report on all the new records and a list of stomiiform species collected during these surveys. Differences in barbel morphology observed for many of the stomiids are discussed.