ABSTRACT
One specimen of the duckbill barracudina Magnisudis atlantica of 402 mm TL was caught in a shallow coastal area in Galician waters, northwest of Spain. Morphometric and meristic parameters along with DNA barcoding, based on cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, were used to confirm the specimen identity. Neighbor-joining analysis of nominal sequences of the genus Magnisudis obtained from the Barcode of Life Data System indicates the presence of six representative groupings of potential species, in contrast to the three that are currently recognized as valid. The stomach contents showed remains of digested crustaceans, tentatively identified as Euphausiids. Histological examination of the gonads revealed the specimen to be an immature female with oocytes at the primary growth stage, indicative of a lack of hermaphroditism. The results add new biological and taxonomic data that contribute to improved understanding of these poorly characterized, mainly deep-water species, demonstrating, once again, the effectiveness of DNA barcoding for identifying deep-sea fishes and characterizing their genetic differences.
ABSTRACT
The first record of the prickly puffer Ephippion guttifer (Tetraodontidae) from Galician waters (north-west Spain) is reported based on a male specimen of 570 mm total length (LT ) caught in the Ría de Vigo. Morphometric, meristic and DNA barcode data confirmed the identification. Histological examination of reproductive tissue was carried out in this species for the first time, showing a mature male in an actively spawning phase. A historical revision invalidates a previous record and establishes this as the northernmost confirmed capture ever reported in the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean.
