Copeia, 2007(4), pp. 798–807 A New Species of Halichoeres (Teleostei: Labridae) from the Western Gulf of Mexico DOUGLAS C. WEAVER AND LUIZ A. ROCHA A new labrid fish, Halichoeres burekae, is described from specimens collected at Stetson Bank, Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS), in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico over claystone, sponge, and coral substrata. The bright purple, blue-green, and yellow body coloration, and anterior black pigmentation of the dorsal fin in the terminal male, large black irregular spot at the base of the caudal peduncle, salmon body coloration, yellow snout in the initial stage/female, and diagnostic differences in the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b gene separate this species from all other western Atlantic labrids. Adult H. burekae were observed in small schools along the reef crest mixed with Thalassoma bifasciatum and Chromis multilineata, and small juveniles were observed in mixed schools with juvenile Clepticus parrae. It feeds primarily on calanoid copepods and other plankton and is a close relative of H. socialis from Belize. This species is currently known from the FGBNMS and reefs off Veracruz, Mexico, in the western Gulf of Mexico. HE coral reef fish genus Halichoeres is the of the wrasse previously identified as H. bath­ T most species-rich genus of wrasses (Labri­ yphilus and realized that it was an undescribed dae), and occurs in tropical waters of all oceans. species. Later, Carlos Gonzales sent us under­ Western Atlantic Halichoeres were last reviewed by water photographs of both sexes of the new Randall and Bo¨hlke (1965), who recognized nine species taken at Veracruz, Mexico. This new valid species. After their revision, three addition­ species is described herein, and its morphology al species from Brazil and one from the and mitochondrial DNA are compared with Caribbean were described and/or recognized as congeners. valid (Rocha and Rosa, 2001; Randall and Lobel, 2003; Rocha, 2004). A molecular phylogenetic MATERIALS AND METHODS analysis of the genus revealed that, with the exception of Halichoeres maculipinna and H. Morphology.—Measurements were made with dial penrosei, the New World species form a mono­ calipers to the nearest 0.1 mm except for eye phyletic clade (Barber and Bellwood, 2005). diameter and fin spine and ray lengths, which In June 1997, a wrasse recognized as a species were measured using an ocular micrometer on not previously documented at the East Flower a dissecting microscope (Table 1). Measure­ Garden Bank (EFGB) was observed by divers ments follow Randall and Bo¨hlke (1965) and from the Reef Environmental Education Foun­ Randall and Lobel (2003), and are expressed as dation (REEF) and Flower Gardens Bank Na­ percent standard length (SL). Counts and tional Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) personnel measurements in the description are for the during an annual reef fish survey. The species holotype followed, in parentheses, by the range was photographed by REEF personnel and of the paratypes when different. Institutional tentatively identified as Halichoeres bathyphilus. abbreviations follow Leviton et al. (1985) and Multiple individuals were subsequently observed Leviton and Gibbs (1988). at EFGB during 1999, 2000, and 2001 surveys. A Reproductive state of the holotype and para­ single, initial stage individual was also observed at type was confirmed by histological analysis. To West Flower Garden Bank during the 2000 avoid damage to the type series by standard survey. In 2001, a school of ten individuals, osteological methods (clearing and staining, including the terminal phase, was observed at skeletal preparations), two individuals (the holo­ EFGB. A group of up to 20 initial and one or two type and one paratype) were scanned at the terminal phase individuals was first observed at University of Texas High-Resolution X-ray Com­ Stetson Bank in 1999, and subsequently in July puted Tomography (HRCT) Facility. The head of and August 2000. Both initial and terminal phase the holotype was imaged at 30 mm sections for individuals were photographed during these a total of 1054 slices with an in-plane resolution cruises and subsequently published as H. bath­ of 28 mm per pixel. Three-dimensional recon­ yphilus (Humann and DeLoach, 2002). structions of the skeleton were generated from During visits to the FGBNMS office, the first the CT slices using VoxBlastH by Vaytek Inc. The author studied photographs of terminal males original CT dataset and derivative animations can # 2007 by the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists WEAVER AND ROCHA—NEW WRASSE FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO TABLE 1. MORPHOMETRICS OF Halichoeres burekae AND CLOSELY RELATED SPECIES. The holotype (UF 121176) is the first specimen listed, followed by the mean and range in the entire type series. For related species of Halichoeres, mean and range of values are given, and number of specimens examined indicated in parentheses (measurements for H. socialis includes values reported by Randall and Lobel, 2003). Standard length is in mm; all other measurements are expressed as percentage of standard length. Characters that do not overlap with H. burekae are in bold and indicated with an asterisk (*). Halichoeres burekae (n 5 8) Holotype Mean (range) H. socialis (n 5 13) H. pictus (n 5 5) H. bathyphilus (n 5 6) H. dispilus (n 5 4) Standard length (mm) 77.4 55.6 (39.7–77.4) 38.1 (22.3–47.0) 78.1 (68.6–96.0) 81.1 (63.7–97.1) 71.53 (52.3–91.8) Head length 28.6 30.3 (28.6–32.7) 32.2 (30.1–35.8) 30.9 (30.2–32.0) 32.4 (31.7–32.6) 31.4 (29.7–33.3) Eye diameter 5.7 6.5 (5.7–7.8) 7.4 (6.6–8.9) 6.0 (4.9–6.7) 6.3 (5.8–7.1) 6.3 (5.4–7.1) Interorbital width 6.6 8.1 (6.1–9.9) 7.2 (6.2–7.9) 6.8 (6.3–7.2) 5.3 (4.7–5.6)* 5.9 (5.1–6.1) Body width 12.1 12.5 (11.8–13.4) 12.7 (12.2–13.8) 12.3 (10.2–13.7) 10.5 (9.9–11.0)* 12.3 (10.5–12.4) Body depth 25.2 23.7 (21.5–27.5) 21.7 (20.2–22.8) 23.8 (19.7–26.0) 21.7 (20.7–23.5) 25.1 (23.3–26.7) Caudal ped. depth 12.7 13.4 (12.7–14.4) 12.2 (11.8–13.4) 10.9 (10.2–11.7)* 11.1 (10.1–11.8)* 12.0 (11.5–12.8) Caudal ped. length 11.2 14.2 (11.2–15.6) 10.6 (9.6–11.8) 10.6 (10.2–11.1)* 10.1 (8.8–10.9)* 10.5 (9.6–12.0) Snout length 7.2 7.8 (7.2–8.1) 8.9 (8.3–9.8)* 8.9 (8.2–9.6)* 10.0 (9.5–10.5)* 9.3 (9.0–9.6)* Predorsal length 24.8 28.5 (24.8–31) 29.7 (28.4–31.2) 27.6 (26.0–29.2) 29.8 (27.9–31.9) 28.3 (26.9–30.4) Preanal length 51.8 53.2 (51.2–55.9) 54.9 (54.0–56.8) 55.9 (53.0–58.4) 54.0 (52.1–56.3) 52.5 (50.4–54.4) First dorsal spine 4.7 5.1 (3.6–6.0) 4.7 (4.1–5.4) 5.1 (3.6–7.8) 4.6 (4.1–4.9) 4.5 (4.0–5.1) Ninth dorsal spine 7.9 10.3 (7.9–12.5) 10.0 (9.3–10.3) 9.8 (8.3–11.4) 8.9 (8.3–9.4) 8.5 (8.2–8.8) Longest dorsal ray 11.0 11.2 (10.1–12.7) 13.0 (12.4–14.3) 11.5 (10.6–12.8) 12.1 (11.5–12.6) 12.3 (11.5–12.8) Length third anal spine 6.8 7.4 (6.4–9.4) 9.3 (8.7–9.8) 7.9 (7.3–9.0) 6.3 (5.8–6.7) 6.7 (6.1–7.1) Longest anal ray 10.2 10.2 (9.5–10.9) 12.9 (11.6–13.8)* 10.8 (9.8–12.3) 11.0 (10.0–11.9) 11.2 (11.0–11.4)* Middle caudal ray 20.0 16.2 (13.2–22.9) 22.2 (21.1–24.2) 20.8 (19.3–21.8) 20.1 (18.8–22.3) 20.7 (19.3–21.5) Longest pectoral ray 19.8 17.9 (16.3–19.8) 20.5 (19.6–21.1) 18.7 (17.6–19.4) 17.1 (15.9–18.5) 19.1 (18.0–19.5) Pelvic fin length 13.6 11.7 (10.3–14.2) 12.8 (11.5–14.1) 12.6 (11.2–15.4) 13.1 (12.2–15) 13.0 (12.4–14.0) 799 800 COPEIA, 2007, NO. 4 be viewed at UT’s Digital Library of Morphology band on anterior portion of dorsal fin; dark spot (http://www.digimorph.org/). with bright blue ocellus above pectoral fin (Fig. 1). Initial phase females are salmon-pink Genetics.—DNA extraction, polymerase chain re­ with a yellow snout and white lateral stripe action, and sequencing followed the methods extending from below eye to lower half of described in detail by Rocha (2004). PCR prod­ caudal-fin base, and a large, oblong black spot ucts were sequenced in the forward and reverse with an irregular margin on caudal peduncle directions, and resulting mtDNA cytochrome (Figs.