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A new species of pipefish (Corythoichthys quattuordecim) has been described based on five specimens collected in Vanuatu and the Chesterfield Islands in New Caledonia.
This particular species of pipefish lives in comparatively deeper waters than most of its relatives, which are typically found in shallower habitats.
Corythoichthys quattuordecim is characterized by a unique combination of morphological features, in particular the presence of 14 trunk rings, a rare meristic feature within the genus.
As the new species was described based on preserved specimens, we are unfortunately unable to provide any information on the color of living animals, and more detailed information on their native habitats is also lacking at this time.
Similar species: The new species is most similar to Corythoichthys amplexus Dawson & Randall, 1975.
Etymology:
The species name “quattuordecim” comes from Latin and refers to the 14 trunk rings of the new species, while the other species of Corythoichthys have 15–18 trunk rings.
Literature reference:
Yuki D, Fricke R, Motomura H (2025)
Corythoichthys quattuordecim, a new pipefish (Teleostei, Syngnathidae) from the Coral Sea.
ZooKeys 1244: 113-119. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1244.153942
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
This particular species of pipefish lives in comparatively deeper waters than most of its relatives, which are typically found in shallower habitats.
Corythoichthys quattuordecim is characterized by a unique combination of morphological features, in particular the presence of 14 trunk rings, a rare meristic feature within the genus.
As the new species was described based on preserved specimens, we are unfortunately unable to provide any information on the color of living animals, and more detailed information on their native habitats is also lacking at this time.
Similar species: The new species is most similar to Corythoichthys amplexus Dawson & Randall, 1975.
Etymology:
The species name “quattuordecim” comes from Latin and refers to the 14 trunk rings of the new species, while the other species of Corythoichthys have 15–18 trunk rings.
Literature reference:
Yuki D, Fricke R, Motomura H (2025)
Corythoichthys quattuordecim, a new pipefish (Teleostei, Syngnathidae) from the Coral Sea.
ZooKeys 1244: 113-119. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1244.153942
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
