Archamia pallida Gon and Randall 1995
Creators: name: Gon, Ofer
name: Gouws, Gavin
name: Mwaluma, James
name: Mwale, Monica
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Actinopterygii
Perciformes
Apogonidae
Archamia
Archamia pallida

description: Archamia pallida Gon and Randall 1995
Figure 1 a, b
Description. D VI + I,9; A II,13-14 (rarely 12 or 15); P 14 (rarely 13 or 15); total number of gill-rakers 4–6 + 12–15 = 17–20; developed gill rakers 2–3 + 12–15; gill rakers on ceratobranchial 9–10. Body depth 2.6–3.4 and head length 2.4–2.6 in SL; body width 2.1–2.4 in body depth; caudal peduncle least depth 1.4–1.8 in caudal peduncle length and the length 4.1–5.0 in SL; distances from tip of snout to first dorsal–fin origin 2.4–2.8, to second dorsal-fin origin 1.7–1.9, to anal-fin origin 1.7–1.95 and to pelvic-fin insertion 2.6–3.2, all in SL; snout length 4.2–5.9, eye diameter 2.95–3.6, interorbital width 3.8–4.5, upper jaw length 2.1–2.4 and lower jaw length 1.9–2.05, all in head length; maxilla width 4.4–5.9 in upper jaw length. Pectoral-fin length 3.7–4.1 and pelvic-fin length 4.8–5.2 in SL; pelvic-fin spine 1.3–1.6 in pelvic-fin length; length of first dorsal-fin spine 1.4–2.5 in second dorsal-fin spine; length of second dorsal-fin spine 2.5–3.2 and length of spine of second dorsal fin 2.2–3.05 in head length, respectively; length of first anal-fin spine 2.7–4.2 in second anal-fin spine; length of second anal-fin spine 2.7–4.0 and longest anal-fin ray 1.6–1.9 in head length. Preopercle edge with 4–16 (usually 6–11) serrations around angle. Tongue with 1–5 (usually 2–3) small teeth posteriorly on midline.
Colour of adult after death: body pale brown tinged with yellow and peppered with small dark dots, except abdominal area from level of upper pectoral-fin base ventrally (Fig. 1 a); head with dark dots, denser on tips of snout and jaws, but with few on cheek and none on throat; upper half of iris blackish; scales above lateral line with dark edge; leading edge of dorsal fins dusky; dark spot at caudal-fin base, ending posteriorly at edge of hypural plate; caudal fin peppered with dark dots becoming smaller posteriorly, its rays reddish distally with dusky tips; other fins transparent with reddish hue.
Colour of adult in alcohol: similar to colour after death; dark spot at caudal-fin base 3.5–7.8 (measured vertically) in caudal peduncle least depth; peritoneum with dark dots of various sizes; stomach and intestine with dense minute dark dots.
Colour of juveniles after death (15.8–26.5 mm): in smallest fish (Fig. 1 b) body and tip of snout translucent white with purplish hue; gill cover and cheek purplish, top of head dusky; iris silvery, slightly darker on dorsal half; dark spots internally along vertebral column and along dorsal edge of peritoneum; small, dark brown, oval caudal spot posteriorly at middle of caudal peduncle; line of small orange dots along base of second dorsal, anal and caudal fins; narrow reddish line at mid-body level, immediately below dark vertebral spots, from above anal-fin origin fading out on caudal peduncle usually before reaching dark caudal spot; caudal fin reddish; other fins transparent. With growth body becomes more opaque, slowly concealing internal melanophores; tip of snout and upper half of iris grow darker; cheek and lower part of opercle become more silvery than purple; small orange dots appear on body giving it yellowish hue; vertical line of orange spots across caudal-fin base becomes overlaid with small dark brown spots as is reddish mid-body line; small dark dots appear along ventral edge of caudal peduncle; leading edge of dorsal fins and tips of caudal-fin rays become dusky.
Material examined. Kenya: Diani Beach, SAIAB 96159, 4: 16.6–17.65 mm, beach with sea grass fringe, beach seine, 0–1 m, G. Gouws et al., 13 November 2009; SAIAB 96212, 26: 16.4–24.9 mm, sea grass, beach seine, 0–1m, O. Gon et al., 15 November 2009; SAIAB 96247, 57.2 mm, sea grass, beach seine, 0–1 m, O. Gon et al., 17 November 2009; SAIAB 96234, 27.45 mm, sea grass, hand-net while snorkeling at night, 0.5–1.0 m, O. Gon and G. Gouws, 16 November 2009. Watamu, SAIAB 96309, 11: 24.9–29.6 mm, sea grass, beach seine, 0–1.2 m, M. Morallana et al., 20 November 2009. Oman: Masirah Island, BPBP 36158, holotype, 34.3 mm, rock and sand bottom, 12 m; BPBM 36453, paratypes, 2: 31.35–34.5 mm; SAIAB 46949, paratype, 33.15 mm, all collected with the holotype. Data for the remaining paratypes were taken from Gon and Randall (1995).
description: Published as part of Gon, Ofer, Gouws, Gavin, Mwaluma, James & Mwale, Monica, 2013, Re-description of two species of the cardinalfish genus Archamia (Teleostei: Apogonidae) from the Red Sea and Western Indian Ocean, pp. 587-594 in Zootaxa 3608 (7) on page 590, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3608.7.5, http://zenodo.org/record/216630