First Record of Pterois russelii in the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, India
Pradip Panda
Zoological Survey of India, Sunderban Regional Centre, Canning, West Bengal - 743329, India.
Arya Sen
Zoological Survey of India, Sunderban Regional Centre, Canning, West Bengal - 743329, India.
Parnasree Mahapatra
Zoological Survey of India, Sunderban Regional Centre, Canning, West Bengal - 743329, India.
J. S. Yogesh Kumar
Zoological Survey of India, Sunderban Regional Centre, Canning, West Bengal - 743329, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Plaintail turkeyfish, Pterois russelii Bennett, 1831 had been reported from coastal parts of West Bengal, but there is no record of this species from Sunderban Biosphere Reserve or any part of Indian mangrove ecosystems. The current communication adds P. russelii, as a new record to the ichthyofaunal diversity of the Indian Mangroves, as well as Sunderban Biosphere Reserve. The specimen was collected from the Canning fish landing area during a local survey focused on the study of mangrove-associated fishes of Sunderban. Canning is located in the Transitional zone of Sunderban Biosphere Reserve. This is the first record of P. russelii from any Indian Mangrove area.
Keywords: Canning, ichthyofauna, Indian mangrove, pterois, Sunderban biosphere reserve, Turkey fish, West Bengal