Haemulidae: E III A5B

Plectorhinchus flavomaculatus (Ehrenberg, 1830)

Lemonfish

Egg diameter in µm

Number of oil globules

Diameter of oil globule in µm

Yolk texture

Perivitelline space

Position of oil globule at hatch

Gut length   at eye- pigment stage

Myomeres

910

1

240

segmented

narrow

bow

47% of NL

24

Egg: This egg is easily confused with EIIIA4A and EIIIA6, but was noted to be segmented on the edges, and instead of the yellow chromatophore patches in the egg, of EIIIA6, these were conspicuously white (A).

Larva: The early larva has 4 patches of white pigment down the length of the body, but the patch at the anus does not form conspicuous pigmented edgings to the finfold, immediately separating the early larva from that of EIIIA6.

I have little doubt this egg has been lumped with EIIIA6 or EIIIA4A on occasions, and it is only DNA barcoding of the larva hatched from the egg shown above, collected in the inshore sample on 19 February 2011, that has supplied a positive identification (BOLD).