New record of Ernogrammus zhirmunskii (Perciformes: Stichaeidae) from Dokdo, East Sea, Korea

Abstract

One specimen (54.8 mm SL) of Ernogrammus zhirmunskii Markevich and Kharin, 2011, belonging to the family Stichaeidae, was firstly recorded from Dokdo, East Sea, Korea on 26 July 2021. This species was characterised by ventral lateral-line canal from the posterior margin of the pelvic-fin base and extending to anus and one or two rigid spines on the posterior part of the anal fin. This species is similar to E. hexagrammus and E. walkeri, two species belonging to the genus Ernogrammus, but differs in that it consists of one ventral lateral-line canal (two species are a pair of parallel ventral lateral-line canal). This study documents the first report of E. zhirmunskii in Korean waters and proposes the new Korean name of ‘il-gob-jul-be-do-la-chi’ for the species. For the confirmation of the identity of the species, a partial gene sequence of the mt COI (554 bp) of E. zhirmunskii was obtained for the first time.