Eubleekeria splendens (Cuvier, 1829)

Abraham, K. J., Joshi, K. K. & Murty, V. S. R., 2011, Taxonomy of the fishes of the family Leiognathidae (Pisces, Teleostei) from the West coast of India, Zootaxa 2886 (1), pp. 1-18 : 3

1. Eubleekeria splendens (Cuvier, 1829)

(Plate I, Fig. 1; Tables 1–3)

Leiognathus splendens Cuvier, 1829 , Regne Anim, dit., 2a, 2: 212

Material examined. 30 specimens (10 females, 14 males, 6 indeterminates) of 41–108 mm TL ( Cochin and Neendakara , Kerala) .

Description. D.VIII – IX, 16; P. ii, 13–14, i – ii; V. I, 5; A. III – 14–15; C. 15–16; Ll. 45–57.

As percent of standard length: Total length 135.06–142.86 (138.64); fork length 116.07–123.33 (118.85); predorsal 33.33–40.51 (36.35); preanal 44.44–54.55 (51.25); dorsal base 51.85–70.51 (58.63); anal base 40.00–48.15 (43.56); head 31.34–34.62 (33.21); dorsal height 18.18–24.64 (22.14); anal height 15.69–21.28 (18.74); pectoral 20.90–27.27 (23.66); depth 40.85–55.36 (52.29).

As percent of head length: Snout 22.22–31.58 (26.26); eye 33.33–44.44 (39.11); head height 77.78–95.24 (87.79).

Body compressed and deep. Anterior part of dorsal profile more strongly convex than anterior part of ventral profile. Dorsal profile with a notch above eye. Snout blunt and shorter than eye diameter. Gape of mouth below ventral border of eye. Mandibles slightly concave. Minute villiform teeth in each jaw. Ventral margin of pre-operculum finely serrated. Lateral line prominent and convex from the beginning, but less convex than the dorsal profile. It extends beyond the end of soft dorsal and anal fins, but stops just short of the base of caudal fin. Ventral fin with an axially scale and reaches very near the origin of the anal fin.

Color. Body silvery, abdomen more silvery than back. Back grayish silvery with faint gray wavy vertical lines descending from the dorsum to a little below lateral line. Tip of snout dotted black. Pectoral axil black. Membrane between the second and sixth dorsal spines jet black and the membrane between the following spines, soft dorsal, anal spines, soft anal fin, and the caudal lobes, faint yellow. Tip of caudal lobes dusky.

Distribution. Most widely distributed along the Indian coast, contributing to the fishery, along with other species, especially along the west coast of India. It is known from Veraval, Mangalore, Calicut, Cochin, Mandapam, Porto Novo, Madras, Visakhapatnam and Kakinada.