Psettina iijimae (Jordan & Starks, 1904)

Iijima flounder; ŝľ

Figure 9D; Table 12–13

Engyprosopon iijimae Jordan & Starks, 1904:626 (Type locality: Suruga Bay, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan).

Psettina iijimae: Hubbs, 1915:456; Shen, 1983:25; Shen & Wu, 2012:754.

Psettina brevirictis (not of Alcock): Chen & Weng, 1965:45.

Specimens examined. NMMB-P01725 (1, 75.0), Hain-da, Kaohsiung, 3 Nov. 1983 ; NMMB-P05573 (3, 65.6– 71.6), Anping, Tainan, 1 Oct. 1963 ; NMMB-P12221 (82.5), Daxi, 22 Jan. 2010 ; NMMB-P26402 (3, 66.9–74.7), Ke-tzu-liao, 27 Jun. 2017; NMMB-P29421 (1, 51.8), Ke-tzu-liao, 25 Apr. 2018 .

Diagnostic features. D 89–91; A 66–71; P 11–13; C 2+13+2=17; LLs 55–61; GR 2–4+5–6=7–10; vert. 10+26– 28=36–38.

Body compressed, elliptical, deepest at middle part of body (43.8–47.3% SL). Head small, about half of body depth (23.0–24.8% SL); front profile of head almost smooth, without distinct concavity anterior of eyes; head profile gentle curve. Snout shorter than 1/2 of eye diameter. Eye diameter longer than upper-jaw length. Interorbital ridge extending from anterior margin of lower eye to posterior margin of upper eye.

Mouth very small, upper-jaw length on ocular side 5.8–6.3% SL; maxilla extending to anterior margin of lower eye. Small mandibular knob at symphysis. Dentition on blind side more developed that on ocular side, teeth on both jaws uniserial, close-set, gradually becoming small posteriorly. Gill rakers short, slender, pointed at tip and not serrate; rakers on upper limb smaller than those on lower limb. Scales on ocular side small, ctenoid with one row of long hair-like ctenii; cycloid on blind side. Pectoral fin on ocular side much shorter than head (10.4–19.4% SL); that of blind side very short, about 2/3 of that of ocular side.

Coloration. Ocular side of body uniformly darkish brown with a row of 6 distinct dark blotches along dorsal margin of body and 5 along ventral margin of body, these blotches entering to dorsal and anal fins; large blackish blotch at junction between curved and straight section of lateral line, at middle straight section and near caudal peduncle on lateral line; distal part of pectoral fin and hind part of caudal fin with blackish band. Blind side of body uniformly milky white.

Size. Reaching 83 mm SL in Taiwan; up to 85 mm SL in southern Japan (Amaoka, 2016).