RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY 2021
Taxonomy & Systematics
RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY 69: 541–547

Date of publication: 17 December 2021
DOI: 10.26107/RBZ-2021-0070
http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:48F97D35-53B0-48E1-A5BB-8DE6D7F5CA6D

Description of a new species of Obliquogobius (Teleostei: Gobiidae)
from the Andaman Sea (northeastern Indian Ocean)
Kyoji Fujiwara1*, Peter N. Psomadakis2,3, Thet Yu Yu Swe4 & Hiroyuki Motomura5
Abstract. Obliquogobius eptactis, new species (Teleostei: Gobiidae) is described on the basis of four specimens(40.7–50.1 mm in standard length) collected by the R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen from the Andaman Sea, off Myanmar,
in depths of 181–184 m. The new species is characterised by the following combination of characters: 2nd dorsalfin rays I, 9 or 10; head somewhat large, length 32.9–34.4% of SL; lateral surface of nape scaled; postorbital pore
G present (in anterior oculoscapular canal); gill opening relatively narrow, anteroventral point extending slightly
forward to vertical level of preopercle margin; caudal fin dorsoventrally asymmetrical, rays in upper half much
longer than those in lower half, giving obliquely pointed appearance; seven bright yellow bars (pale whitish inpreserved specimens) on body, two under 1st dorsal-fin base, remainder under 2nd dorsal fin (from origin) andon caudal peduncle; dorsal fins pale brown with bright yellow barred pattern; 1st dorsal fin without broad black
margin; pectoral fin bright yellow; three bright yellow vertical bars on upper part of caudal fin; distinct black spot
on centre of caudal-fin base absent. Although the new species is similar to Obliquogobius yamadai Shibukawa &Aonuma, 2007, the former can be distinguished from the latter by having seven bright yellow bars on the body[vs. five bars (rarely six, including indistinct partial bar located above anus) in O. yamadai], a bright yellow barredpattern on the dorsal fins (vs. 1st and 2nd dorsal fins lacking barred patterns: 1st dorsal fin with distinct broad black
margin, 2nd dorsal fin generally faint yellow), bright yellow pectoral fins (vs. translucent white or faint yellow), no
distinct small black spot centrally on the caudal-fin base [vs. a small black spot (variable in size) with following
indistinct yellow partial bar present], three bright yellow irregular vertical bars restricted to upper part of caudal
fin (vs. three longitudinal yellow stripes on entire fin; stripes faded out soon after capture), and larger head, length
32.9–33.3 (vs. 28.3–32.2) and 34.4 (vs. 29.1–33.5) % of SL in males and females, respectively.
Key words. Obliquogobius eptactis, Obliquogobius yamadai, deepwater goby, R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen, trawl
surveys, Myanmar, Indian Ocean

INTRODUCTION

slender, larger than inner row teeth; enlarged, stout caninelike teeth absent; head sensory papillae well developed,
usually modified into bulbous or short barbel-like fleshy
flaps; reduced longitudinal pattern of sensory papillae rows
on cheek; head sensory canal pores moderately developed,
comprising snout pore (B’), single anterior (C) and posterior(D) interorbital pores, four postorbital pores (E, F, G, andH’; absent in some species) and three preopercular pores(M’, N, and O’); 10+16=26 vertebrae; P-V 3/II II I I 0/9(Shibukawa & Aonuma, 2007). To date, six species have been
described, all being regarded as valid [viz. Obliquogobius
cirrifer Shibukawa & Aonuma, 2007, Obliquogobius cometes(Alcock, 1890), Obliquogobius fulvostriatus Chen, Jaafar &Shao, 2012, Obliquogobius megalops Shibukawa & Aonuma,
2007, Obliquogobius turkayi Goren, 1992, and Obliquogobius
yamadai Shibukawa & Aonuma, 2007] (Shibukawa &Aonuma, 2007; Chen et al., 2012).

The deep-dwelling gobiid genus Obliquogobius Koumans,
1941 is characterised by the following combination ofcharacters: VI-I, 8–10 dorsal-fin rays; I, 8–10 anal-fin rays;
20–24 pectoral-fin rays; 22–26 longitudinal scale rows;
midline of pre-dorsal-fin region naked; gill opening relatively
wide, anteroventral point extending to (or beyond) verticalthrough preopercular margin; outermost teeth on both jaws

Accepted by: Zeehan Jaafar
The United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Kagoshima University, 1-2124 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan; Email: kyojifujiwara627@yahoo.co.jp(*corresponding author)
1

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Viale delle Terme di
Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy2

In 2013, 2015, and 2018, the EAF-Nansen Programme of
FAO in cooperation with the Myanmar Government carriedout trawl surveys using the R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen off thecoast of Myanmar to obtain biological and environmental
information in the study area and identify species diversity
within the country as a basis for a FAO marine species
identification guide intended for fishery purposes. Sixteen

South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Private Bag 1015, Makhanda 6140,
South Africa
3

Marine Resources Survey and Research Unit, Department of Fisheries, Bayint Naung
Road, Yangon 11011, Myanmar
4

The Kagoshima University Museum, 1-21-30 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan

5© National University of Singapore
ISSN 2345-7600 (electronic) | ISSN 0217-2445 (print)

541

Fujiwara et al.: A new species of Obliquogobius
gobiid species, including the comet deepwater goby O.
cometes were included in the guide (see Psomadakis etal., 2019). Four unidentified specimens of Obliquogobius
were caught during the 2018 survey but were not able
to be examined in time for inclusion in the guide. In thefollowing pages, we describe the specimens collected fromthe Andaman Sea characterised by distinct yellow bars as
a new species.
MATERIAL AND METHODSCounts and measurements followed Chen et al. (2012),
measurements being made to the nearest 0.01 mm, except
for standard length (abbreviated as SL), which was measured
to the nearest 0.1 mm. In the description, holotype data
is presented first, followed by data for other paratypes inparentheses (if different). Cephalic sensory canal pores andpapillae were observed using versatile staining with CyanineBlue (Saruwatari et al., 1997), their terminologies following
Akihito (1984) and Miller (1986), respectively. Osteologicalfeatures were observed from radiographs of all specimens.
Description of dorsal formula followed Akihito (1984).
Institutional codes follow Sabaj (2020).

Fig. 1. Photographs (A and B; dorsal and lateral views, respectively)
and radiograph (C) of the (preserved) holotype of Obliquogobius
eptactis, new species (SAIAB208554, male, 50.1 mm SL, AndamanSea).

In addition to comparative materials examined in this study(see below), data for 4 species of Obliquogobius (O. cirrifer,O. cometes, O. megalops, and O. yamadai), O. fulvostriatus,
and O. turkayi were obtained from Shibukawa & Aonuma(2007), Chen et al. (2012), and Goren (1992), respectively.
A colour photograph of O. yamadai from Indonesia (Hoet al., 2021: pl. 8C) was also included in our comparisons.

anterior oculoscapular canal); gill opening relatively
narrow, anteroventral point extending slightly forward tovertical level of preopercle margin; caudal fin asymmetrical
dorsoventrally, rays in upper half much longer than thosein lower half, giving obliquely pointed appearance; sevenbright yellow (pale whitish in preserved specimens) bars on
body, two located under 1st dorsal-fin base, remainder under
2nd dorsal-fin (from origin) and on caudal peduncle; dorsal
fins pale brown with bright yellow barred pattern; 1st dorsal
fin without broad black margin; pectoral fin bright yellow;
three bright yellow vertical bars on upper part of caudal
fin; distinct black spot on centre of caudal-fin base absent.

TAXONOMY
Obliquogobius eptactis, new species[New English name: Seven-striped deepwater goby](Figs. 1–3; Table 1)

Description. Dorsal-fin rays VI-I, 10 (9 in 3 paratypes);
anal-fin rays I, 9; pectoral-fin rays 22 (21 in SAIAB 208473,
208484); pelvic-fin rays I, 5; segmented caudal-fin rays 9+8;
branched caudal-fin rays 6+6 (7+6 in KAUM–I. 157330);
longitudinal scale rows ca. 24 (counted from scale pockets);transverse scales 7; pre-dorsal-fin scale rows 0; vertebrae
10+16. P-V 3/II II I I 0/9; 2 anal-fin pterygiophores anterior
to first haemal spine. Proportional measurements given in
Table 1.

Holotype. SAIAB 208554, male, 50.1 mm SL; Indian
Ocean; Andaman Sea; Myanmar; off Myiek Archipelago;
Tanintharyi coast; station 154 (10°02′42″N 97°22′45″E);
R/V. Dr. Fridtjof Nansen; demersal trawl; depth 184 m; P.
N. Psomadakis; 27 September 2018.
Paratypes. SAIAB 208473 (squashed condition), male, 47.0mm SL; SAIAB 208484 (heavily rubbing, scale condition
could not be observed), female, 40.7 mm SL; Indian Ocean,Andaman Sea; Myanmar; off Myiek Archipelago; Tanintharyicoast; station 149 (10°21′26″N 97°25′06″E); R/V. Dr. Fridtjof
Nansen; demersal trawl; depth 181–184 m; P. N. Psomadakis;
26 September 2018. — KAUM–I. 157330 (formerly SAIAB
20854), male, 42.4 mm SL; same data as holotype.

Body slender, compressed, width much less than depth.
Head subcylindrical, depressed anteriorly. Head size of
female slightly larger than that of males. No raised cutaneous
ridges on head and nape. Snout short (much shorter thaneye diameter), rounded, slightly inflated. Eye large, locateddorsolaterally. Interorbital region very narrow (its widthmuch narrower than pupil diameter), flattened. Anterior andposterior nostrils close to each other; former located midway
between eye and upper jaw, with membranous tube; latter
located before anterior margin of eye, small, circular. Mouth
terminal, inclined obliquely upwards anteriorly, forming
angle of ca. 30° to 40° with body axis. Anterior margin of

Diagnosis. A species of Obliquogobius (Fig. 1) distinguishedfrom other members of the genus by the following
combination of characters: 2nd dorsal-fin rays I, 9 or 10;
head somewhat large, length 32.9–34.4% of SL; lateralsurface of nape scaled; postorbital pore G present (in542RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY 2021
Table 1. Morphometric measurements of type specimens of Obliquogobius eptactis, new species.
SAIAB 208554

SAIAB 208473

KAUM–I. 157330

SAIAB 208484

Holotype

Paratype

Paratype

Paratype

male

male

male

female

50.1

47.0

42.4

40.7

Head length (HL)

33.3

32.9

33.0

34.4*

Pre-dorsal length

37.8

–

36.2

37.6

nd

Snout to 2 dorsal-fin length

55.8

–

55.4

54.5

Snout to anus length

55.5

–

52.2

53.7

Snout to anal-fin origin length

60.8

–

58.2

59.7

Pre-pelvic-fin length

32.7

–

34.4

32.6

Caudal-peduncle length

29.3

–

28.1

27.9

Caudal-peduncle depth

10.9

–

11.0

10.8

1st dorsal-fin base length

12.4

11.6

11.6

11.2

2 dorsal-fin base length

18.1

18.2

19.2

18.8

Anal-fin base length

19.3

16.6

19.4

16.1

Caudal fin length

29.3

–

–

27.6

Pectoral fin length

32.5

28.2

33.5

28.6

Pelvic fin length

21.0

22.7

22.6

21.8

Body depth at pelvic-fin origin

17.7

–

18.1

16.5

Body depth at anal-fin origin

16.6

–

16.1

15.7

Body width at anal-fin origin

10.6

–

12.2

9.2

Pelvic-fin origin to anus length

24.7

22.1

20.4

22.3

Snout length

6.2

7.5

6.6

6.6

Eye diameter

11.5

12.1

12.0

11.5

Cheek depth

9.3

8.5

9.6

9.8

Postorbital length

16.5

14.3

16.5

17.0*

Head width in maximum

20.5

–

18.4

17.3

Head width in upper gill opening

16.1

–

14.4

–

Bony interorbital width

1.1

–

0.9

0.9

Fleshy interorbital width

10.9

–

9.3

9.8

Low-jaw length

12.4

–

10.8

11.8

Snout length

18.6

22.9

19.9

19.2

Eye diameter

34.7

36.8

36.4

33.5

Cheek depth

27.9

25.8

29.2

28.5

Postorbital length

49.7

43.6

50.0

49.5*

Standard length (SL; mm)
As % of SLnd

As % of HL

Head width in maximum

61.6

–

55.6

50.4

Head width in upper gill opening

48.4

–

43.7

–

Bony interorbital width

3.3

–

2.8

2.6

Fleshy interorbital width

32.6

–

28.1

28.4

Low-jaw length

37.4

–

32.8

34.2

*measured from right side; – indicates no data

543

Fujiwara et al.: A new species of Obliquogobius
A photograph of the holotype cephalic sensory system isgiven in Fig. 2. Head sensory canals pores moderately
developed, comprising snout pore (B’), single anterior (C),and posterior (D) interorbital pores, four postorbital pores(E, F, G, and H’) and three preopercular pores (M’, N, andO’). Sensory papillae on head well developed, modified into
short barbel-like fleshy flaps (damaged in SAIAB 208473,
208484); reduced longitudinal pattern of sensory-papillae
rows on cheek, all rows uniserial or comprising a single
papillae; sensory-papillae row a with 3 well-spaced papillae;
row b with 6 papillae, extending from just behind posterior
end of row c to just before preopercle; row c with 4 papillae,
slightly elevated posteriorly, the posteriormost close to theanterior pores of rows a and b; row cp with a single papillabelow anteriormost papilla of row a; row d with 6 papillae,
short, not bifurcated, extending horizontally from below
second papilla of row c to just before row cp; row f with 2
papillae just behind lower jaw symphysis.
Body covered with deciduous (almost all scales lost due toabrasion) ctenoid scales. Pre-pelvic-fin region covered withcycloid scales; anterior margin of pre-pelvic-fin scales justbehind anteroventral point of gill opening. Entire head region(except for lateral surface of nape) naked. Scales on cheekand pectoral-fin base not found (see Remarks).
All dorsal- and anal-fin spines slender, flexible. First dorsal
fin triangular, 1st and 2nd spines longest, all spines lacking
filamentous tips; dorsal fin origin located posterior to verticalthrough pectoral-fin base. Second dorsal and anal finsrelatively long, origin of latter slightly posterior to verticalthrough 2nd dorsal-fin origin, last rays well separated from
caudal-fin base. Pectoral fin long, pointed, middle rays
longest, tips reaching to above origin of 3rd anal-fin soft ray;all rays connected by membrane, two uppermost (damaged inholotype) and lowermost rays unbranched. Pelvic fins fused
medially with connecting membrane (between innermost
rays) and thin frenum (between spines); posterior tip reaching
below 2nd dorsal-fin origin when appressed; pelvic-fin origin
just below ventral end of pectoral-fin base; posterior marginof pelvic frenum smooth, slightly emarginated; all segmented
pelvic-fin rays branched. Caudal fin relatively long, subequal
to caudal-peduncle length.

Fig. 2. Photographs of head of Obliquogobius eptactis, new species(SAIAB208554, 50.1 mm SL), showing sensory canal pores(red circles) and papillae (yellow circles). AN and PN indicate
anterior and posterior nostrils, respectively. Arrow heads indicate
anteroventral end of gill opening.

Colouration. Fresh colouration based on Fig. 3 andKAUM–I. 157330 (dorsal view only). Head brown dorsally,
faint yellow ventrally (especially around lower jaw) with two
oblique bright yellow stripes on nape; anterior strip extending
from vertical through middle of head to just behind eye,posterior stripe wider than anterior stripe, extending fromabove pectoral-fin base to horizontally level with posterior
tip of jaws; both stripes on each side generally separated
mid-dorsally (anterior stripes connected in KAUM–I.
157330). Body brown, with seven similar width (< pupil
diameter) bright yellow bars; two anteriormost bars locatedbelow origin and middle of 1st dorsal-fin base, respectively,
middle three bars below origin, middle, and posterior end of
2nd dorsal-fin base, respectively, two posteriormost bars on
caudal peduncle. Dorsal fins pale brown with bright yellow
barred pattern; anal fin bright yellow, marginal one-third

tongue slightly emarginate, free from floor of mouth. Mental
flap on each side of chin slightly developed as low fleshy
bump. Lower jaw subequal with upper jaw, its posterior tip
reaching to vertical through middle of pupil. Upper-jaw tip
behind vertical through lower-jaw tip. Both jaws with threeor four irregular rows of small, pointed conical teeth, thetip of each slightly incurved posteriorly; teeth on outermost
row on jaws evenly/widely spaced, slender, distinctly larger
than teeth on inner rows; teeth on anterior part of outermost
row largest in both jaws; enlarged canine-like teeth on jaws
absent; vomerine and palatine teeth absent. Gill membranes
attached anteriorly to isthmus. Preopercular and opercularmargins rounded, upper ends horizontally level with upperand lower margins of pupil, respectively.

544

RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY 2021

Fig. 3. Fresh colouration of Obliquogobius eptactis, new species.
A, B, SAIAB208554, male, 50.1 mm SL; C, SAIAB 208473, male,
47.0 mm SL; D, SAIAB 208484, female, 40.7 mm SL. A, C, D,
lateral views; B, dorsal view.

of fin translucent white; pectoral fin bright yellow; pelvic
fin light yellowish anteriorly, blackish posteriorly; caudal
fin pale brown dorsally, blackish-brown ventrally (ca. 1/4
height of fin) with three incomplete bright yellow bars on
upper part, anteriormost bar on caudal-fin base, following
bars similarly spaced; small distinct black spot on centreof caudal-fin base absent (poorly defined pale brown markapparent in holotype).

Fig. 4. Fresh specimens of Obliquogobius yamadai. A, KAUM–I.
57485, male, 41.5 mm SL; B, KAUM–I. 57486, male, 41.2 mm
SL; C, KAUM–I. 35869, male, 34.8 mm SL; D, KAUM–I. 70091,
male, 49.6 mm SL.

origin) and on the caudal peduncle], a bright yellow barredpattern on the dorsal fins, a broad black margin absent on
the 1st dorsal fin (vs. dorsal fins lacking barred patterns: 1st
dorsal fin with distinct broad black margin, 2nd dorsal fin
generally faint yellow), bright yellow (vs. translucent whiteor faint yellow) pectoral fins, no distinct black spot centrally
on the caudal-fin base [vs. a black spot (variable in size)with following indistinct yellow partial bar present], 3 brightyellow irregular vertical bars restricted to upper part of caudal
fin (vs. 3 longitudinal yellow stripes on entire fin; stripes
faded out soon after capture: Fig. 4C, D), and larger head,length 32.9–33.3 (vs. 28.3–32.2) and 34.4 (vs. 29.1–33.5)% of SL in males and females, respectively (Figs. 1, 3–6).

Colour in alcohol. Head and body brown. All stripes andbars (of fresh specimens) retained as pale white. All finsgenerally translucent white (bright yellow colouring lost);
dorsal fins with brown barred patterns; pelvic fin slightly
blackish posteriorly; caudal fin with three indistinct brownbars.
Distribution. Currently known only from four specimens
trawled between 181–184 m off the Myeik Archipelago,
Andaman Sea.
Etymology. The specific name “eptactis”, a combinationof the New Greek “epta” and “aktis”, means “seven lightrays”, in reference to the seven characteristic yellow bars
on the body.

Obliquogobius eptactis is readily distinguished from O.
cirrifer, O. fulvostriatus, and O. megalops by the following
combination of characters: 2nd dorsal-fin rays I, 9 or 10;
lateral surface of nape scaled; relatively narrow gill opening(anteroventral point extending slightly forward to verticallevel of preopercle margin); and postorbital pore G (in anterior
oculoscapular canal) present (vs. 2nd dorsal-fin rays I, 8; lateralsurface of nape naked in O. cirrifer and O. megalops; gill
opening wide, anteroventral point beyond vertical throughComparisons. The new species is very similar to O. yamadai,
O. eptactis differing from the latter in having 7 [vs. 5 (rarely
6, including indistinct partial bar located above anus) in O.
yamadai] bright yellow bars on the body [2 (vs. 1) underthe 1st dorsal-fin base, 5 (vs. 4) under the 2nd dorsal fin (from545Fujiwara et al.: A new species of Obliquogobius

Fig. 5. Preserved specimens of Obliquogobius yamadai. A, B, KAUM–I. 81144, female, 37.1 mm SL; C, D, KAUM–I. 57486, male,41.2 mm SL; E, F, KAUM–I. 70096, male, 52.3 mm SL; G, H, KAUM–I. 70109, male, 48.7 mm SL. A, C, E, G, lateral views; B, D,
F, H, dorsal views.

posterior margin of eye in O. fulvostriatus and O. megalops;
postorbital pore G absent in all three species).
Compared with O. cometes and O. turkayi, O. eptactis has
an asymmetrical caudal fin (upper half of rays much longer
than lower half, giving obliquely pointed appearance),
lacking black barred patterns (vs. caudal fin symmetrical
dorsoventrally in O. turkayi; upper half of fin with a distinct
black barred pattern in O. cometes). In addition, the head ofO. eptactis is smaller than that of O. cometes (32.9–34.4%
SL vs. 35.6–41.5% SL). Obliquogobius eptactis has brightyellow (pale white in preserved specimens) bars on the body,such a pigmentation pattern being absent in other species of
Obliquogobius (except for O. yamadai) [viz. body with one
or several blotches in O. cometes (5 faint yellow blotches
in fresh specimens), O. cirrifer and O. turkayi (1 and 5
or 6 brown blotches in preserved specimens, respectively,
fresh colour unknown); body lacking bars and blotches in
O. megalops (fresh colour unknown) and O. fulvostriatus].

Fig. 6. Relationship of head length (% SL) to standard length (mm)of O. eptactis, new species (red diamonds) and O. yamadai (bluecircles and lines). Open and closed symbols indicate females andmales, respectively.

Remarks. In the original description of O. yamadai,
Shibukawa & Aonuma (2007) described cycloid scales on
the cheek and pectoral-fin base as diagnostic of the species.
However, no trace of such scales could be confirmed in 15
examples of that species examined in this study, except in
KAUM–I. 70094 (right side cheek scales present only).
Clearly, scales on the cheek and pectoral-fin base aredeciduous and very difficult to detect in abraded specimens.
Unfortunately, non-abraded specimens of O. eptactis were
unavailable in this study. Whereas it is likely that cycloid546

RAFFLES BULLETIN OF ZOOLOGY 2021
cheek and pectoral-fin base scales are diagnostic for speciesof Obliquogobius, their susceptibility to abrasion reduces
their potential usefulness as a distinguishing character.

Network in the Amami Islands” project of Kagoshima
University adopted by the Ministry of Education, Culture,
Sports, Science and Technology, Japan. We acknowledge
that opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations
expressed in this publication, partly supported by NRF funds,
are those of the authors, and that the NRF accepts no liability
whatsoever in this regard.

Material Examined. Obliquogobius cometes: SAIAB
208690, female, 86.3 mm SL; Andaman Sea, Myanmar.
Obliquogobius yamadai: KAUM–I. 35869, male, 34.8 mm
SL; KAUM–I. 57485, male, 41.5 mm SL; KAUM–I. 57486,
male, 41.2 mm SL; KAUM–I. 70091, male, 49.6 mm SL;
KAUM–I. 70093, female, 36.4 mm SL; KAUM–I. 70094,
male, 51.5 mm SL; KAUM–I. 70095, male, 40.3 mm SL;
KAUM–I. 70096, male, 52.3 mm SL; KAUM–I. 70097,
male, 49.0 mm SL; KAUM–I. 70106, male, 44.1 mm SL;
KAUM–I. 70109, male, 48.7 mm SL; KAUM–I. 75200,
male, 38.9 mm SL; KAUM–I. 81143, female, 35.7 mm SL;
KAUM–I. 81144, female, 37.1 mm SL; KAUM–I. 81295,
female, 40.4 mm SL; East China Sea, Japan.

LITERATURE CITED
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The EAF-Nansen Programme, implemented by the Food andAgriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in
close collaboration with the Norwegian Institute of Marine
Research (IMR) and funded by the Norwegian Agency for
Development Cooperation (Norad), provided us with theopportunity to work with Obliquogobius specimens, photos
and data collected during the R/V Dr. Fridtjof Nansen
Myanmar 2018 survey. We are grateful to Kathrine Michalsen(IMR), Jens-Otto Krakstad (IMR), Htun Thein (Department of
Fisheries, Myanmar) and the crew and people responsible forthe success of the Nansen surveys. We also thank Nkosinathi
Mazungula, Vuyani Hanisi, M. Dwani of NRF/SAIAB for
their assistance in receiving and processing specimens, and G.
Hardy (Ngunguru, New Zealand) for reading the manuscript
and providing help with English. This study was supported
in part by a Grant-in-Aid from the Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science for JSPS Fellows (DC1: 19J21103);
JSPS KAKENHI Grant Numbers 20H03311 and 21H03651;
the JSPS Core-to-core CREPSUM JPJSCCB2020009; andthe “Establishment of Glocal Research and Education

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