A NEW SPECIES OF FISH OF THEÜENUS Stellifer (PERCIFORMES: SCIAENIDAE) FROM THE SOUTH CARIBBEAN SEA

Abstract

The genus Stellifer is charaterized by its lack of mental barbels, interorbital width 3.5 or less in head, swim bladder with two chambers, the anterior with a pair of diverticula located posterolateralÿ, cavernous head, gill rakers long and slender; otoliths sagittae and lapillus enlarged. A new species of Stellifer is described. This species is characterized by the presence of a pair of small bulb-like diverticula in the anterior chamber of the swim bladder, dark first gill arch, with 42-49 gill rakers, the longest of them larger in length than the gill filament located at angle of arch, and four mental pores. Differs from other species of the genus by the number of gill rakers. The more similar species is S. rastrifer of which differs in that it has different number of preopercular spines and mental pores.