Occurrence of larvae of Pseudorhombus elevatus Ogilby (Heterosomata-Pisces) along the south-west coast of India

Abstract

Larvae of Pseudorhombus elevatus Ogilby ranging in standard length from 3.47 to 7.76 mm are described These were brought on board R.V Varuna in the vertical plankton haul collected during the International Indian Ocean Expedition 1962-65 from two stations off the south-west coast of India Larvae slightly less than 8 mm had developed the full complement of dorsal, anal, caudal and pelvic rays but lacked pectoral rays and a few gill rakers Metamorphosis must take place at a small size, probably at less than 10 mm standard length The most notable character of middle and late stage larvae is the pronounced elongation of the nine anteriormost dorsal fin rays Adults of P elevatus with mature gonads were subsequently collected from the same region The identification of the larva to species is based mainly on meristic characters