A review of the Icefish species from the genus Channichthys Richardson, 1844 (Channichthyidae) with double-rowed gill rakers

E.A. Nikolaeva

Proceedings of the Zoological Institute RAS, 2019, 323(4): 558–567 · https://doi.org/10.31610/trudyzin/2019.323.4.558

Full text

Abstract

The present work is dedicated to a modern complex morphological study on a representative sample (42 fish specimens from the stock collection of the Zoological Institute RAS and 3 specimens-holotypes from the collection of the Zoological Museum of the National Museum of Natural History NAS of Ukraine) Kerguelen icefish of the genus Channichthys Richardson, 1844 (Channichthyidae) with a special structure of the gill apparatus – double-rowed gill rakers: charcoal icefish Channichthys panticapaei Shandikov, 1995, big-eyed icefish Ch. bospori Shandikov, 1995, and pygmy icefish Ch. irinae Shandikov, 1995. All this species of icefish, with their common similarity, are united by the special structure of the gill apparatus - the presence of two well-developed rows of gill rakers on the gill arches, especially on the first gill arch, which is a key defining sign that is clearly distinguishes them from all other species of the genus Channichthys. Until now, there is no unambiguous universally accepted opinion of specialists about the taxonomic status of these icefish. They are distinguished either in one species, or in three species, or are identified as Channichthys sp. In the course of this work, a redescription of Ch. panticapaei with the confirmation of the validity of this species, based on complex data of external morphology, the study of the seismic sensor system and especially the structure of the gill apparatus, highlighting the most important diagnostic features of the species, as well as the replace of the species Ch. bospori and Ch. irinae, to the synonymy of Ch. panticapaei.

Key words

icefish, validity, gill apparatus, morphology, synonymy, Channichthyidae, Channichthys bospori, Channichthys irinae, Channichthys panticapaei

Submitted November 5, 2019 · Accepted December 10, 2019 · Published December 26, 2019

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