Vol. 38 No. 3, 1999

Halichoeres orientalis, a New Labrid Fish from Southern Japan and Taiwan

John E. Randall

Bishop Museum, 1525 Bernice St., Honolulu, HI 96817-2704, USA

John E. Randall (1999) A new species of labrid fish, Halichoeres orientalis, previously misidentified as H. ornatissimus (Garrett), is described from specimens from the Ryukyu Is. and Ogasawara Is., Japan. It is also known from Taiwan and Kochi Prefecture, Japan. It differs from the similar H. ornatissimus, which ranges broadly elsewhere in the Pacific, in having a more complexly colored body and lower gill-raker counts (16-18, vs. 17-20 for ornatissimus). H. cosmetus Randall and Smith of the western Indian Ocean, also a related species, has 11 instead of 12 dorsal and anal soft rays.

Key words: Fish taxonomy, Labridae, Halichoeres, Japan, Taiwan.

*Correspondence: -