RESEARCH ARTICLE

Four new fishes of the genus Pempheris (Perciformes: Pempheridae) from the western Indian Ocean

John E. Randall & Benjamin C. Victor

Abstract

Four new species of pempherid fishes (common name sweepers) of the genus Pempheris are described: P. convexa from the south coast of Oman and the Maldives, unique in the convex dorsal profile of the head, small eye, and silver-gray color, and the scales rimmed with yellowish brown; P. cuprea from northern Mozambique with a deep body, low counts of pectoral-fin rays and gill rakers, and copper coloration; P. darvelli from the Gulf of Oman, silvery with irregular broad brassy stripes and pink iridescence on head and dorsally on body; and P. eatoni, common on the coast of KwaZulu-Natal and Mozambique, often in tidal channels along rocky shores, and typically silvery gray with blue-green iridescence, each scale with a vertically elongate brown spot.