Species Diversity 18: 1–7
25 May 2013
DOI: 10.12782/sd.18.1.001

New species of polynesian Dendrochirus1

A New Lionfish of the Genus Dendrochirus (Scorpaenidae:
Pteroinae) from the Tuamotu Archipelago,
South Pacific Ocean
Mizuki Matsunuma1,3 and Hiroyuki Motomura2
1 The United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Kagoshima University, 1-21-24 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan

E-mail: k1139853@kadai.jp

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

E-mail: motomura@kaum.kagoshima-u.ac.jp
3 Corresponding author(Received 31 January 2013; Accepted 30 April 2013)
Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov. (Scorpaenidae: Pteroinae) is described on the basis of a single specimen collected
off Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu Archipelago, South Pacific Ocean. The new species is uniquely characterized by having bilobed pectoral fins, those of its all congeners being rounded. The new species is similar to a Hawaiian endemic congener,
Dendrochirus barberi (Steindachner, 1900), in having nine dorsal-fin soft rays, five anal-fin soft rays, relatively high counts(more than 18) of pectoral-fin rays, fewer than two tentacles on the snout tip, and no large, ocellated spot on the soft-rayed
portion of the dorsal fin. However, the new species is clearly distinguished from D. barberi by having more pectoral-fin rays
(19 in the former vs usually 18 in the latter), higher counts of spinous points on the suborbital ridge (14–16 vs 1–9) andpterotic spine (8 vs 1–5), a slightly shallower, narrower body [body depth and width 35.4% of SL and 18.6% of SL, respectively, vs 34.0–43.9 (mean 39.2)% of SL and 19.7–26.4 (22.7)% of SL], a slightly shorter, narrower head [head length andwidth, 37.6% of SL and 12.9% of SL, respectively, vs 40.3–45.7 (42.9)% of SL and 13.8–17.2 (15.4)% of SL], slightly smaller
orbit diameter [12.9% of SL vs 13.1–16.0 (14.2)% of SL], and a slightly shorter postorbital length [15.3% of SL vs 16.4–20.6(18.5)% of SL].
Key Words: Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov., lionfish, new species, French Polynesia, Makemo Atoll, pectoral fins.

Introduction
The Indo-Pacific lionfish genus Dendrochirus Swainson,
1839 is distinguished from the other genera of the scorpaenid subfamily Pteroinae by the following combination ofcharacters: dorsal fin with 13 spines and anal fin with threespines; parietal spines not elevated and their bases strongly
divergent posteriorly; mandible lacking ridges, spines, andoverlying scales; and pectoral fin with branched rays (Eschmeyer and Randall 1975; Mandrytsa 2001; this study). Five
species of Dendrochirus have been regarded as valid, viz., D.
barberi (Steindachner, 1900), D. bellus (Jordan and Hubbs,
1925), D. biocellatus (Fowler, 1938), D. brachypterus (Cuvier
in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1829), and D. zebra (Cuvier in
Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1829) (Eschmeyer and Randall
1975; Poss 1999).
During a revisionary study of Dendrochirus, a single
unidentified specimen was found in the collection of the
Bishop Museum, Honolulu. Collected at a depth of 120 m
off Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia, during radiobiological monitoring related to Mururoa
Atoll in the same archipelago conducted by the Direction
des Centres d’Expérimentation Nucléaire (Poupin 1996), it
was subsequently identified as belonging to Dendrochirus
on the basis of the above-mentioned diagnostic characters.
This specimen is similar to a congener, D. barbari, in over

all body appearance, but differs in pectoral-fin ray counts,
several proportional measurements, the shape of the pectoral fin, and the head spine arrangement. No additional examples of this apparently new species were found elsewhere,
although a large number of specimens were examined inmuseums worldwide. A formal description of the specimen
is given below.
It is notable that Møller et al. (2004) described Tuamotuichthys bispinosus (Ophidiiformes: Bythitidae) as a new
genus and species on the basis of a single specimen collected
off Morane Atoll, Tuamotu Archipelago, during the sameradiobiological monitoring cruise (J. Poupin, personal communication).

Materials and Methods
Measurements generally follow Motomura (2004a, b),
but head width and maxillary depth follow Motomura et al.
(2005b, 2006a) and Motomura et al. (2006b), respectively.
As an additional feature, body depth at the anal-fin origin
was measured at the level of the first anal-fin spine base.
Counts generally follow Motomura et al. (2005a–c) andMotomura and Johnson (2006), but pre-dorsal-fin scalecounts follow Motomura et al. (2006b). The following
counts are added here: oblique cheek scale rows—the number of rows of scales on the shortest line between the orbit© 2013 The Japanese Society of Systematic Zoology

2

M. Matsumura and H. Motomura

and the posteroventral corner of the cheek at the meeting
point of the suborbital ridge and the preopercle’s submarginal ridge; horizontal cheek scale rows—the number ofrows of scales between the posterior margin of the orbit andthe preopercle’s submarginal ridge at mid-orbit level; vertical cheek scale rows—the number of rows of scales between
the ventral margin of the orbit and the suborbital ridge at
mid-orbit level. The last two soft rays of the dorsal and anal
fins were counted as single rays, each pair being associatedwith a single pterygiophore. The formula for the configuration of the supraneural bones, anterior neural spines, andanterior dorsal fin pterygiophores follows Ahlstrom et al.
(1976). Counts and measurements were generally made on
the left side, except for pectoral-fin rays (counted on bothsides). Vertebrae were counted from a radiograph.
The head spine terminology shown in Fig. 1 generally follows Randall and Eschmeyer (2002: fig. 1) and Motomura(2004b: fig. 1) with the following additions: the spine at
the base of the uppermost preopercular spine is termed the
supplemental preopercular spine (Eschmeyer 1965) and thaton the lateral surface of the lacrimal bone is referred to as
the lateral lacrimal spine (Motomura and Senou 2008: fig. 2;
Motomura et al. 2011: fig. 1). The coronal spine is figured
in Chen (1981: fig. 1). Standard length is abbreviated as SL.

Fig. 1. Lateral (top) and dorsal (bottom) views of head of Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov. (BPBM 37140, 57.4 mm SL, holotype). Shaded areas indicate skin flaps. 1, nasal spine; 2, preocularspine; 3, supraocular spine; 4, postocular spine; 5, tympanic spine;
6, coronal spine; 7, parietal spine; 8, nuchal spine; 9, sphenotic
spine; 10, pterotic spine; 11, lower posttemporal spine; 12, supracleithral spine; 13, preopercular spine; 14, supplemental preopercular spine; 15, suborbital ridge/spine; 16, lateral lacrimal ridge/spine;
17, posterior lacrimal spine. Scale bars 5 mm.

The holotype of D. tuamotuensis sp. nov. is deposited at the
Bishop Museum, Honolulu (BPBM). Additional institutional abbreviations used in the present study are as follows:
California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco (CAS); Field
Museum of Natural History, Chicago (FMNH); Muséum
National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris (MNHN); Überseemuseum, Bremen (UMB); Museum Support Center, Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, Suitland (USNM).
Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov.
[New English name: Tuamotu’s Dwarf Lionfish](Figs 1–4; Table 1)
Holotype. BPBM 37140, 57.4 mm SL, Makemo Atoll,
Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia, 16°34′12″S,143°27′06″W, 120 m depth, trap, J. Poupin, 4 June 1990.
Diagnosis. A species of Dendrochirus with the following combination of characters: dorsal fin with 9 soft rays;
anal fin with 5 soft rays; pectoral-fin rays 19; no barbel on
tip of snout; profile of posterior margin of pectoral fin bilobed (notched at midpoint); body depth 35.4% of SL; bodywidth 18.6% of SL; head length 37.6% of SL; head width
12.9% of SL; orbit diameter 12.9% of SL; postorbital length
15.3% of SL; suborbital ridge with 14–16 spines; pterotic
with 8 spines; no large, ocellated spot on soft-rayed portionof dorsal fin.
Description. Morphometrics of the holotype are shownin Table 1. Characters included in the specific diagnosis
are not repeated here. Dorsal fin with 13 spines; anal fin
with 3 spines; pectoral fin with 19 (1 upper unbranched +8 branched+​10 lower unbranched) rays; pelvic fin with 1
spine and 5 soft rays. Pored lateral-line scales 24 (right side
only, left side damaged); scales above lateral line 6, below
12; scale rows between sixth dorsal-fin spine base and lateral line 6; scale rows between last dorsal-fin spine base andlateral line 6; pre-dorsal-fin scale rows 3; oblique cheek scalerows 3; horizontal cheek scale rows 2; vertical cheek scalerows 0; gill rakers 15 [4 on upper limb+​11 on lower limb
(8 and 3 rakers on ceratohyal and hypobranchial, respectively)]. Branchiostegal rays 7. Formula for configuration of supraneural bones, anterior neural spines, and anterior dorsal
pterygiophores //2+​1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1+​1/1/. Vertebrae 10+​14=​24.
Body oblong, moderately compressed anteriorly, morestrongly compressed posteriorly; depth moderate, greaterthan length of longest dorsal-fin spine. One simple tentacleon posterior edge of low membranous tube associated withanterior nostril, its length distinctly greater than diameter ofanterior nostril, its tip extending beyond posterior marginof posterior nostril when depressed posteriorly. One short,
simple tentacle on supraocular. No skin flap on orbit; small
skin flap on uppermost preopercular spine base; 2 small
skin flaps on posterior margin of preopercular. One shorttentacle on anterior portion of ventral margin of lacrimal.
Relatively large skin flap on tip of posterior lacrimal spine,
tip of flap not extending beyond profile of lower jaw when
depressed ventrally (lateral view).

New species of polynesian Dendrochirus3

Table 1. Morphometrics, expressed as percentages of standard length, of Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov. and D. barberi. Means (in parentheses) include data for holotypes and paratypes.
Dendrochirus
tuamotuensis
sp. nov.
Holotype

Dendrochirus barberi
Holotype of

BPBM 37140

UMB 4562

Holotype of
D. hudsoni
USNM
50652

57.4
35.4
28.6
18.6
37.6
12.9
11.1
12.9
5.2
5.1

30.7
39.4
31.9
23.8
44.6
16.3
12.7
15.0
7.5
7.5

33.8
41.1
34.3
23.4
42.6
16.0
10.4
14.5
6.5
6.5

34.8–36.8
37.4–39.4
31.3–32.6
22.7–23.6
42.2–45.7
14.9—
14.1–14.7
5.7–6.0
5.7–6.0

96.5
38.8
32.2
19.5
40.8
14.8
10.9
13.8
6.2
5.7

38.0–71.9
34.9–42.6
32.0–36.2
19.7–22.8
43.1–45.3
14.7–16.8
10.4–11.8
13.5–15.8
5.5–7.1
5.5–7.4

24.1–113.7
34.0–43.9 (39.2)
26.6–35.0 (32.6)
20.3–26.4 (22.7)
40.3–45.6 (42.9)
13.8–17.2 (15.4)
9.9–13.3 (11.5)
13.1–16.0 (14.2)
4.9–7.8 (6.2)
4.9–7.3 (5.9)

19.7
7.5
15.3
0.5

19.2
6.8
17.3
0.7

19.8
6.2
18.3
0.3

18.4–19.0
6.3–6.9
16.7–17.7
0.8–0.9

19.8
7.6
18.2
1.1

18.8–20.8
6.8–7.4
19.3–20.6
0.5–1.4

18.7–21.9 (20.2)
6.0–8.1 (7.0)
16.4–19.7 (18.5)
0.3–1.5 (0.9)

30.8
70.6
34.8
20.6
25.3
26.5
28.9
30.0
30.7
30.1
22.1
24.0
19.5
15.2
12.4
18.5
25.6
28.2
10.6
17.4
19.2
28.6
28.9
53.7
20.6
31.4
37.6
17.4
10.3

37.5
70.0
41.7
—
—
—
—
—
—
27.7
24.8
20.5
16.0
10.7
9.8
16.9
21.2
—
11.7
19.2
21.5
27.0
29.3
46.6
—
35.2
—
16.3
11.7

33.7
71.3
42.9
—
—
29.0
29.0
31.4
31.4
29.6
29.3
26.3
20.7
11.8
—
—
—
—
11.5
20.4
19.8
—
—
47.0
19.8
—
35.8
18.0
12.1

33.3–36.1
70.7–72.3
42.5–43.2
15.8
22.7
25.3–25.8
26.4
27.3–28.8
27.9–29.3
26.9–27.0
25.5–26.4
22.3–22.7
14.7–17.4
13.0
10.6–11.1
16.8–18.4——
10.3–11.7
17.8–19.8
18.7–20.1—
31.3
48.9–50.9
19.3–19.8
35.6–37.6
37.9
17.0–17.4
11.7–11.8

32.7
75.1
40.7
15.0
21.8
23.3
26.1

33.9–36.6
67.4–73.4
36.4–42.1
17.9–18.7
23.2–31.1
26.9–28.2
29.6–31.1
30.6–34.3
30.9–32.6
30.1–30.6
29.2–31.1
26.3–29.4
15.8–22.9
11.1–16.5
9.5–13.5
18.5——
11.5–12.3
21.2–23.9
19.5–23.4
29.4–32.9
30.9–34.0
48.7–55.7
20.8–24.9
36.7–39.8
37.1–42.0
17.1–20.9
11.9–12.9

31.5–37.8 (34.4)
67.2–75.8 (71.2)
36.1–43.7 (39.8)
11.7–19.2 (15.5)
17.6–27.1 (23.3)
21.7–30.7 (25.8)
22.5–31.8 (27.4)
23.3–32.4 (28.5)
23.7–32.4 (28.2)
24.8–32.0 (27.6)
22.5–29.3 (26.4)
19.3–29.6 (24.1)
15.6–23.7 (19.7)
10.6–18.3 (14.6)
9.7–13.0 (11.2)
13.7–20.0 (16.5)
21.6–29.0 (24.6)
22.8–31.8 (27.0)
8.7–13.9 (11.3)
16.5–23.5 (19.9)
15.7–22.0 (19.4)
25.7–33.0 (29.5)
26.8–35.5 (30.9)
41.9–59.5 (50.4)
17.2–25.5 (20.9)
30.8–41.6 (36.5)
32.3–43.9 (37.5)
15.2–19.5 (17.4)
10.8–13.1 (12.1)

P. barberi
SL (mm)Body depth
Body depth at anal-fin origin
Body width
Head length
Head width
Snout length
Orbit diameter
Interorbital width at middle of eye
Interorbital width at preocularspine baseUpper-jaw length
Maxillary depth
Postorbital length
Distance between VMO1 andsuborbital ridge
Pre-dorsal-fin lengthPre-anal-fin length
Pre-pelvic-fin length
1st dorsal-fin spine length
2nd dorsal-fin spine length
3rd dorsal-fin spine length
4th dorsal-fin spine length
5th dorsal-fin spine length
6th dorsal-fin spine length
7th dorsal-fin spine length
8th dorsal-fin spine length
9th dorsal-fin spine length
10th dorsal-fin spine length
11th dorsal-fin spine length
12th dorsal-fin spine length
13th dorsal-fin spine length
1st dorsal-fin soft ray length
Longest dorsal-fin soft ray length
1st anal-fin spine length
2nd anal-fin spine length
3rd anal-fin spine length
1st anal-fin soft ray length
Longest anal-fin soft ray length
Pectoral-fin ray length
Pelvic-fin spine length
Longest pelvic-fin soft ray length
Caudal-fin length
Caudal-peduncle length
Caudal-peduncle depth

Paratypes ofParatypes of

Non-types of

D. chloreus

D. barberi

n=2

Holotype of
D. chloreus
USNM
50701

n=6

n=34

D. hudsoni

—
26.3
26.1
25.6
22.9
20.1
15.2
10.8
14.7
—
—
10.6
18.0
16.5
27.5
28.3
49.5
18.9
35.1
33.5
16.2
12.3

1 Ventral margin of orbit.

Cycloid scales covering head, including cheek, preopercle, and opercle, but absent on snout, preocular, supraocular, postocular, interorbital canal, occiput, upper postorbital
area, suborbital pit, maxilla, and mandible. Poorly devel-

oped ctenoid scales covering upper anterolateral body surface, cycloid scales covering remaining lateral body surface;scales not extending onto rays or membranes of median finsexcept basal caudal fin. Exposed cycloid scales covering pec-

4

M. Matsumura and H. Motomura

toral-fin base and ventral surface of trunk, including interpelvic space.
Lateral line complete, weakly sloping downward. Sensory
pores of cephalic lateralis opening at tips of spine-like tubes.
Three sensory pores on underside of each dentary; 1 small
pore on each side of symphysial knob.
Mouth moderately large, slightly oblique, forming angleof about 30° to horizontal axis of head and body; upper edgeof posterior maxilla swollen laterally, forming low ridge anddisplaying poorly developed median lateral ridge; posterior
margin of maxilla just reaching mid-orbit level. Symphyseal
gap separating premaxillary teeth bands distinctly narrower than width of each band; upper jaw with band of small,
slender, conical teeth; about 5 tooth rows at front of upper
jaw; about 4 tooth rows at front of lower jaw; small teeth in
5 rows forming blunt V-shaped patch on vomer; no palatine
teeth.
Dorsal profile of snout relatively steep, forming angle ofabout 40° to horizontal axis of head and body. Nasal spinewith single small, upwardly directed spinous point distally;
its length subequal to anterior nostril diameter. No medianinterorbital ridge. Interorbital ridges moderately developed,
separated by narrow channel, diverging posteriorly, conjoined with origins of coronal spines (left side only). Interorbital space moderately deep, with about one-fifth of orbit
extending above dorsal profile of head. Coronal spine small
with a single spinous point; its length subequal to that of
tympanic spine. Tympanic spine small, relatively flattened,with a single spinous point; no extra spine. Preocular with
2 (4 on right side) small spines on outer edge. Supraocular spine with 3 spinous points. Postocular spine on outermargin of postocular, with 8 spinous points; posterodorsal corner of postocular not expanded laterally. Transverse
bump developed in front of occipital area (between bases ofcoronal spines), curved posteriorly in dorsal view. Parietal
spine with 1 spinous point; base of parietal spine relatively
long, diverging posteriorly, completely conjoined with baseof nuchal spine; origin of parietal spine just behind of tip ofcoronal spine in dorsal view. Nuchal spine with 1 spinous
point. Sphenotic with 8 (9 on right side) spines in 3 patches(2 short vertical ridges on right side), surrounding sensory
canal. No postorbital spine or sensory canal. Pterotic spine
serrated with 8 spinous points on relatively long base. Lower
posttemporal spine with 2 (3 on right side) spinous points.
No upper posttemporal spine. Spuracleithral spine with 1
spinous point on posterior end of long base.
No anterior lacrimal spine. Posterior lacrimal spine
broad, plate-like, with 1 spinous point under skin. Laterallacrimal ridge with 1 spine (2 on right side); ridge on dorsal articular process lacking spines (2 on right side). Suborbital ridge well serrated, spines aggregated into anterior [6(8 on right side)] and posterior (8) groups; this ridge notconjoined with lateral lacrimal ridge. Suborbital pit shallow, poorly developed. Preopercular with 3 spines, uppermost spine longest, others both of similar shorter length, allspines directed posteriorly; upper and middle spines closer
to each other than middle and lower spines; lowermost
spine plate-like. One supplemental preopercular spine pres-ent. No exposed opercular spine.
Origin of first dorsal-fin spine above lower posttemporalspine; bases of first and second dorsal-fin spines closer toeach other than those of subsequent adjacent spines; lengthof first spine 0.8 times that of second spine; sixth spine longest; lengths of fifth to seventh spines subequal; 12th spine
shortest, its length 0.8 and 0.7 times those of antepenultimate and posteriormost spines, respectively; membraneof spinous portion of dorsal fin strongly incised. Dorsalfin soft rays all branched; third ray longest, its length lessthan that of longest dorsal-fin spine; posteriormost ray
branched, with extremely low membrane extending to caudal peduncle. Origin of first anal-fin spine just below baseof last dorsal-fin spine; third spine longest; first spine 0.6
times longer than second and third spines. Anal-fin softrays all branched; second ray longest, its length subequal tothat of longest dorsal-fin soft ray; posterior branch of lastsoft ray not joined by membrane to caudal peduncle. Pectoral fin long, tip of longest ray extending beyond a vertical through base of last anal-fin soft ray, but not reachingcaudal-fin base; fifth ray longest; lengths of rays decreasingfrom fifth to ninth or tenth ray and increasing again toward
13th ray; middle 8 rays each branched into two; lower unbranched rays weakly thickened. Pelvic-fin soft rays all
branched; third ray longest, longer than upper jaw; last ray
joined by membrane to abdomen for less than one-fourthof its length; tip of longest ray just reaching anterior margin of anus when depressed. Caudal fin with 4 procurrent, 2segmented unbranched, and 4 segmented branched rays in
dorsal series; 3 procurrent, 2 segmented unbranched, and 5
segmented branched rays in ventral series; and moderately
rounded posterior margin of fin. Caudal peduncle moderately deep, its depth 0.6 times caudal-peduncle length.
Color of preserved specimen. See also Fig. 2. Headand body brownish-white without markings. Skin flap on
uppermost preopercular spine base with brown pigmentation; other skin flaps and tentacles on head pale brownishwhite. Eye blackish-blue, without radial markings. Dorsal
fin membrane translucent; each fin spine with a small brown
blotch on middle to upper portion; soft-rayed portion of
dorsal fin with about 33 small brown spots on rays. Anal
fin membrane translucent, soft-rayed portion with about 17
small brown spots on rays, expressed as short lines basally.
Pectoral fin membrane transparent, with about 6 transverse
broad, brown bands (almost lost from posterior half of fin,but clearly apparent on inner surface). Pelvic fin membranetranslucent, with 5 broad, brown bands. Caudal fin membrane transparent, with 34 brown spots on rays, expressedas short bars basally. Color in life and in fresh condition unknown.
Distribution. The species is currently known only from
Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia, theholotype having been collected at 120 m depth off the atoll.
Etymology. The specific name tuamotuensis is derived
from the name of the type locality of the species, the Tuamotu Archipelago.
Remarks. Among the valid species of Dendrochirus, D.
tuamotuensis sp. nov. is uniquely characterized by having bi-

New species of polynesian Dendrochirus5

Fig. 2.

Holotype of Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov. (BPBM 37140, 57.4 mm SL).

Fig. 3. Pectoral fin of Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov. (BPBM
37140, holotype, 57.4 mm SL). Scale bar 5 mm.

lobed pectoral fins (Fig. 3), those of the other species being
rounded. Examinations of the available type specimens of
the nominal species of Dendrochirus revealed D. tuamotuensis to be most similar to Pterois barberi Steindachner, 1900,
Dendrochirus hudsoni Jordan and Evermann, 1903, andDendrochirus chloreus Jenkins, 1903 in having nine dorsalfin soft rays, five anal-fin soft rays, a relatively high count(more than 18) of pectoral-fin rays, fewer than two tentacles
on the snout tip, and no large, ocellated spot on the softrayed portion of the dorsal fin. Two of these three nominal
species, D. hudsoni and D. chloreus, were regarded as juniorsynonyms of P. barberi by Eschmeyer and Randall (1975)
and Randall (2007); based on our examination, we concur.
Dendrochirus tuamotuensis is clearly distinguished fromD. barberi in having more pectoral-fin rays [19 in D. tuamotuensis vs 17–18 (usually 18) in D. barberi], and higher
counts of spinous points on the suborbital [14 (16 on rightside) vs 1–9] and pterotic spines (8 vs 1–5). Furthermore,
D. tuamotuensis differs from D. barberi in having a slightly shallower, narrower body [body depth and width 35.4%
SL and 18.6% SL, respectively, vs 34.0–43.9 (mean 39.2)%
SL and 19.7–26.4 (22.7)% SL], a slightly shorter, narrowerhead [head length and width, 37.6% SL and 12.9% SL, respectively, vs 40.3–45.7 (42.9)% SL and 13.8–17.2 (15.4)%
SL], a slightly smaller orbit diameter [12.9% SL vs 13.1–16.0(14.2)% SL] and a slightly shorter postorbital length [15.3%
SL vs 16.4–20.6 (18.5)% SL] (Fig. 4; Table 1).
Comparative materials. Dendrochirus barberi: BPBM
24087, 6 specimens, 66.8–105.8 mm SL, northwest of
Molokai Island, Hawaiian Islands, 21°15′N, 157°08′W,
124 m, shrimp trawl, National Marine Fisheries ServiceHonolulu Laboratory, 11 November 1968; BPBM 24373, 2,
93.2–110.3 mm SL, northwest of Molokai Island, Hawaiian
Islands, 21°15′N, 157°08′W, 124 m, shrimp trawl, National
Marine Fisheries Service Honolulu Laboratory, 28 November 1968; CAS-SU 7467, 2 paratypes of Dendrochirus
chloreus, 34.8–36.8 mm SL, Honolulu, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, United States Fish Commission, 1901; CAS-SU
23294, 5 paratypes of Dendrochirus hudsoni, 35.0–54.8 mm
SL, Honolulu, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, RV Albatross,
1902; CAS-SU 23315, paratype of D. hudsoni, 71.9 mm,same data as CAS-SU 23294; FMNH 63582, 9, 24.1–
88.1 mm SL, Kahuku, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, L.
Woods et al., 21 April 1961; FMNH 63748, 3, 88.5–97.0 mm
SL, Hawaiian Islands, John G. Shedd Aquarium, May 1937;
MNHN 1975-981, 3 of 6, 33.8–102.8 mm SL, Kaneohe,
Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, 21°30′N, 157°48′W, M. L.
Bauchot et al., October 1974; UMB 164, holotype of Pterois
barberi, 30.7 mm SL, Honolulu to Cape Horn, “Captain
Barber”; USNM 50652, holotype of D. hudsoni, 33.8 mm
SL, Waikiki, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, United States
Bureau of Fisheries, 1901; USNM 50701, holotype of D.
chloreus, 96.5 mm SL, Honolulu, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, O. P. Jenkins, 1889; USNM 109333, 2, 59.7–63.3 mm
SL, reef at Mokuleia, Waialua, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, O. Degener, 1938; USNM 109367, 2, 83.3–100.9 mm
SL, Honolulu, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, J. Thompson, 4 October 1939; USNM 140497, 4, 46.9–63.6 mm SL,
Waimea Bay, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, L. Schultz and6

M. Matsumura and H. Motomura

Fig. 4. Relationships of: A, body depth; B, body width; C, head length; D, head width; E, orbit diameter; F, postorbital length (all as % ofstandard length) to standard length (mm) in Dendrochirus tuamotuensis sp. nov. (star) and D. barberi (circles).

V. Brock, 31 August 1947; USNM 265959, 3, 62.5–113.7 mm
SL, Honolulu, Oahu Island, Hawaiian Islands, D. S. Jordan,
1902. Dendrochirus bellus: FMNH 58783, holotype of Brachirus bellus, 62.2 mm SL, Misaki (Kanagawa Prefecture),
Japan, K. Aoki. Dendrochirus biocellatus: USNM 98894, holotype of Nemapterois biocellatus, 62.5 mm SL, 0.7 mile (ca.
1.3 km) off Jolo Light, Philippines (6°04′20″N, 120°59′20″E),
22 fathoms (ca. 40.2 m), 14 February 1908. Dendrochirus
brachypterus: MNHN 6565, holotype of Pterois brachyptera, 70.1 mm SL, locality unknown. Dendrochirus zebra:
CAS-SU 8673, 2 paratypes of Dendrochirus sausaulele Jordan and Seale, 1906, 56.6–95.4 mm SL, Apia, Samoa, D. S.
Jordan and V. L. Kellogg, 1902; MNHN 6624, 2 syntypes of
Pterois zebra, 33.2–37.3 mm SL, Ambon, Indonesia, J. R. C.
Quoy and J. P. Gaimard; MNHN 6627, syntype of P. zebra,
48.2 mm SL, Mauritius, M. Maillard; MNHN 6629, syntypeof P. zebra, 80.1 mm SL, Mauritius, M. Mathieu; MNHN
6545, syntype of P. zebra, 60.2 mm SL, same data as MNHN
6629; USNM 51760, holotype (90.0 mm SL) and paratype(70.7 mm SL) of D. sausaulele, same data as CAS-SU 8673.

Acknowledgments
We are especially grateful to K. Swagel (FMNH), R.
Causse (MNHN), P.-R. Becker (UMB), and J. T. Williams(USNM) for their hospitality during the first author’s visits
to their institutions. We are also grateful to A. Suzumoto(BPBM) and D. Catania (CAS) for specimen loans and forproviding opportunities to examine specimens. We thankJ. Poupin (Institut de Recherche de l’Ecole Navale, France)for providing sampling information on the holotype of D.
tuamotuensis, T. Hashimoto (KAUM) for taking the radiograph, G. Hardy (Ngungru, New Zealand) for reading themanuscript and providing helpful comments, and anonymous referees for critical comments. This study was supported in part by grants awarded to the first author by the
Fujiwara Natural History Foundation (Tokyo, Japan). This
study was also supported in part by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B, 24370041 and C, 23580259) from theJapan Society for the Promotion of Science, Tokyo, Japan(JSPS), a Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B, 19770067)
from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture, Tokyo, Japan, JSPS Asian Core Program “Establishment of Research and Education Network on Coastal Marine Science in Southeast Asia”, JSPS International Training
Program “Protect Diversity of Bioresources in the TropicalArea”, and the Coastal Area Capability Enhancement inSoutheast Asia Project of the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto, Japan.

New species of polynesian Dendrochirus7

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