A new, conspicuously pigmented Pyrrhulina (Teleostei: Characiformes: Lebiasinidae) from the Río Tigre, Loreto, Peru

Abstract

A new species of Pyrrhulina is described based on morphological and molecular evi-dence. Pyrrhulina punctata is distinguished from all congeners by the presence of a series of 7 to 16 irregular blotches of dark pigmentation on the flanks, equally marked in juveniles and adult specimens, the presence of 26–28 lateral-line scales, 17–21 maxillary teeth, 23–25 outer premaxillary teeth, 40–41 inner premaxillary teeth and 23 outer dentary teeth, the distinctly elongate rays on dorsal, pelvic and anal fin on adult males, the presence of irregular dark marks on the basal portion of anal-fin rays and intervening membranes, and the presence of a second dark blotch on the distal tip of longest dorsal-fin rays. The molecular data indicate a closer relationship with Pyrrhulina spilota, corroborating the morphological evidence and the shared coloura- tion pattern. Besides the diagnostic characters allowing the recognition of both species, their distinction was corroborated by all species delimitation algorithms [Assemble Species by Automatic Partitioning (ASAP), Poisson Tree Processes (PTP) and Generalized Mixed Yule Coalescence (GMYC)] employed herein. In addition, the occurrence of P. spilota in the Madeira basin is refuted as the registers were based on misidentifications of Pyrrhulina vittata.