Revision of the Fish Genus Plectranthias (Serrandidae: Anthiinae) with Descriptions of 13 New Species JOHN
E. RANDALL
Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Box 19000-A , Honolulu, Hawaii 96819
Abstract.- The tropical marine fish genus Plectranthias Bleeker, Family Serranidae, Subfamily Anthiinae, is expanded to include the genera Sayonara, l sobuna , Xenanthias, Pteranthias, Zalanthias, Serranops, Pelon trus, and Zacal/anthias. The following 17 described species are recognized in Plectranthias: the type species P. anthioides (Gunther), known only from the holotype from Celebes; P. foresti Fourmanoir from the Philippines; P. gardineri (Regan) from the Seychelles; P. garrupellus Robins and Starck from Florida and the West Indies; P. intermedius (Kotthaus) from the vicinity of Socotra, Arabian Sea; P. japonicus (Steindachner) from Japan (described as a cirrhitid); P. kelloggi (Jordan and Evermann) from Hawaii, Japan and New Caledonia [azumanus (Jordan and Richardson) is regarded as a subspecies of P. kelloggi, and a population from New Caledonia is named as a new subspecies, melanesius]; P. longimanus (Weber) from the western Pacific to the western Indian Ocean; P. maculicauda (Regan) from New Zealand and New South Wales; P. megalepis (Gunther) from the Kai Islands, Arafura Sea, Indonesia; P. megalophthalmus Fourmanoir and Randall from New Caledonia; P. morgansi (Smith) from Kenya; P. retrofasciatus Fourmanoir and Randall and P. rubrifasciatus Fourmanoir and Randall from New Caledonia; P. sagamiensis (Katayama) from Japan and the Ryukyus; P. winniensis (Tyler), widespread in the Indo-West Pacific; and P. yamakawai Yoshino from the Ryukyus. In addition, the following 13 species are described as new: P. alieni from 90 to 192m off Western Australia; P. bauchotae from 140 to 180m off southern Madagascar; P. cirrhitoides from 2.5 to 19m at Rapa, South Pacific; P.fourmanoiri from 15 to 44m in Oceania; P. helenae from 119 to 168m off Hawaii; P. inermis from 14 to 30m in the Moluccas, New Britain, and the Philippines; P. kamii from Guam (275m), Palau (270m), Ryukyus, and Japan; P. maugei from 250m offSW Madagascar; P. nan us from 5 to 57 mat numerous islands in Oceania and Cocos-Keeling in the Indian Ocean (previously confused with P. longimanus); P. taylori from 183m at Canton Island, Phoenix Islands (the largest species, to 237.5 mm SL); P. vexillarius from 49 to 63 m in the Gulf of Oman; and P. wheeleri and P. whiteheadi, both from the Kai Islands, Arafura Sea (syntypes of P. megalepis).
Introduction
The anthiine genus Plectranthias Bleeker (1873), family Serranidae, was revised by Yoshino (1972). He recognized two species, P . anthioides (Gunther), the type species, and P. yamakawai from the Ryukyu Islands which was described as new. He overlooked the paper by Robins and Starck (1961) in which Plectranthias garrupellus was described from Florida and the Bahamas. Also Robins and Starck correctly placed Pelontrus morgansi Smith from Kenya in the genus Plectranthias. The holotype of Plectranthias anthioides (Gunther) from Celebes was examined Micronesica 16(1): 101 - 187. 1980 (June).