The Female of a Rare Dragonet (Teleostei : Callionymidae) from Japan with Comments on its Synonymy

Abstract

A female specimen of the callionymid fish, Spinicapitichthys draconis, is described for the first time. The specimen is characterized by having a pair of cirri on the dorsoposterior surface of the eyes, a pair ofhony tubercles on the occipital region, a preopercu!ar spine with 5 processes on outer side and 4 processes on inner side, and a large first dorsal fin with a large black ocellus on the third membrane. Callionymus (Spinicabitichthys) csiro Fricke is shown to be a junior synonym of S. draconis.