Department of Zoology, Arignar Anna Govt. Arts College, Villupuram – 605 602.
The band fish Cepola macrophthalma, newly discovered off the South East Coast of India, is the subject of our report. A single C. macrophthalma specimen was obtained from the Chennai fish landing center of Kaasimedu. Morphometric and Meristic characters were noticed for ordered recognizable proof. Cepola macrophthalma was later identified as the fish. Body was shallow and gradually drew closer to caudal fin. Family Cepolidae or band fishes include benthic or supra benthic fishes of which just Cepola macrophthalma species have so far been accounted for first time just for three days (12 to 14 September 2023) at Cuddalore, Puducherry, Chennai, South East Bank of India. A cepolid fish measuring 40 cm in length was found in the discards of a sea trawler unit 400 meters off the South East Coast of India during a routine fish collection. It was taken 16 tons per day in Chennai, 4 tons per day in Cuddalore, and tons per day in Puducherry. This report refreshes the topographical dissemination for this species con-framing its presence in the South East Shore of India. The details are provided here because the fish comes from a new location.
C. macrophthalma is a fish of the red band fish family Cepolidae (gastropods). It is found in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean from Senegal north to the British Islets. This species is known as the red band fish, though this name is also given to other member of the genus Cepola. Cepola macrophthalma has a thin and like ribbon shape body and pointed tail. It is red in color, with an orange or yellow underside. It has large silvery eyes. Its dorsal and anal fins stretch the length of its body and are nearly continuous with its tail (Caudal fin). It is found on the coastal and inner continental shelf of the eastern Atlantic between northern can be found on sandy and muddy ocean bottoms at depths of between 10 and 400 Senegal and Scotland and the Mediterranean west of the Aegean Sea and the Nile Delta.
Family Cepolidae (Class Actinopterygii, Order Perciformes) or bandfishes as they are popularly called comprise of five genera and 23 species of small (to perhaps 40 cm total length) that usually occur in moderately deep water (upto 400 m) (Nelson et al., 2016). Though they live in vertical burrows they may also be found swimming in mid water or washed ashore after storms in the sea. They occur singly or in groups and feeds on small crustaceans and chaetognaths. Bandfish are an important part of the diets of many oceanic predators, especially john dories, but also other fish, common dolphins (Stergiou and Fourtouni, 1991). The red bandfish Cepola macrophthalma(Linnaeus,1766) is distributed throughout the Mediterranean as well as Eastern Atlantic, north to the British Isles and south to northern Senegal (Tortonese., 1986) and in the Indo – West Pacific including New Zealand. In India, only three species of cepolids have so far been reported Acantho cepola lambata, (Manoj Kumar and Pavithran, 2011), Owstonia simoterus and Owstonia weberi (Venu 2016). The juveniles and adults were earlier caught in a wide range of depths from less than 25 to 200m, and the highest abundance was found at depths of about 100m.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
On Setember 12, 2023, a ceolid fish of total length 40 cm was obtained in the discards of a sea trawler unit at kaasimedu, Chennai (fig. 1). The fish was later identified and confirmed as C. macrophthalma. With the present specimen, the species diversity of ceolids has gone upto four in Indian waters. Since the fish is from a new locality, details are given herewith.
RESULTS
Characteristics of the fish recorded were – body elongated deep and gradually tapering to the caudal fin. Eyes are large and high on head. Head short with short and blunt snout. Mouth is large and oblique. Two nostrils, posterior nostril a simple pore, located just anterior edge of eye, slightly bigger than anterior one; posterior margin of pectoral fin rounded, all rays branched; pelvic fin inserted slightly anterior to pectoral fin. Caudal fin pointed. Both dorsal and anal fins are long, 75 and 84 soft rays respectively. Pectoral fin with 17 fin rays; pelvic with 1 long and 5 short fin rays; 6 spines on pre – operculum by which the pre – operculum margin is serrated, one at angle of pre – operculum, one on the vertical, and four on the horizontal margin. Dorsal fin origin is slightly behind orbit and middle of pectoral fin. A large dark blotch present on the anterior portion between 9th and 16th dorsal fin rays. Both jaws equally protruding; upper jaw reach to the middle of eye; a single row of recurred canine teeth slightly bigger than lateral ones; anus located just before origin of anal fin; lateral line ascending from the upper part of gill opening, then running very close to dorsal fin base.
Table1: Morphometric and meristic characters of the present specimen of C. Macrophthal main comparison with earlier work
DISCUSSION
A population of around 14,000 red band fish was discovered off the Isle of Lundy in the Bristol Channel in the 1970s.
SYSTEMATICS
Class - Actinopterygii
Order - Perciformes
Family - Cepolidae
Genus - Cepola
Species - C. macrophthalma
Fig. cepola macrophthalma (Linnaeus, 1758)
synonums
Cepola macrophthalma (Linnaeus, 1758)
Ophidion macrophthalmum Linnaeus, 1758: p.259.
Description
Body elongated, ribbon like, tapering, with a continuous dorsal fin with no spine and 70 soft rays. Firs, two rays of the dorsal fin are un-segmented. Anal fin is also continuous with 60 soft rays, and no spines. Caudal fin with median rays is a longer and free at their tip. Dorsal inserted behind pelvic. Pectoral inserted lower in the body; pelvic fin inserted in front of ectoral. head with a convex forehead; spinal armature seen on head operculum; vomer and palatine toothless. Six branchiostegal rays resent. Mouth turned upward, terminal. Teeth prominent, projecting outward from lower jaw. eyes big. A spine seen on the upper outer corner of the operculum. Morphometric and meristic measurements are given in the Table 1.
Color
Body reddish with yellow color also on fins. Eyes red in color. Body color lost when reserved in formalin.
Specimen
The resent specimen is first time encountered in the trawler landings. The description and meristic characters of the resent specimen closely match the details given in the FAO sheets of the Red Sea and Mediterranean as well as the Western Pacific. The sample obtained was very fresh when collected. This point to the fact that is was collected near the shore and not from its locality. Most of these silent travelers do not survive the journey or in the new area, but occasionally some do and, if aggressive and fast reproducing, may become invasive – out- competing local flora and fauna. In new surroundings, an introduced species may not have the same natural brakes, such as pathogens, grazers, predators or parasites, on its population number as in its native environment (Gland, 2009). The introduction of new species can hence frequently grow unhindered and have huge and impeding results on the new host biological system, influencing the efficiency of fisheries and hydroponics, as well as the economy and occupations of local area reliant upon the attacked region's biodiversity.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors are grateful to the Head and staffs of the Zoology Department and the Principal of Arignar Anna Govt. arts college, Villupuram, Tamilnadu. For partially supported us to do this work.
REFERENCES
N. Arunpandiyan*, S. Ananthakrishnasamy, Incidental catch of Red Band Fish (Cepola Macrophthalma) at South East Coast of India, Int. J. of Pharm. Sci., 2024, Vol 2, Issue 10, 1553-1557. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13998055
10.5281/zenodo.13998055
