The Rapa Nui Fairy Basslet (Pseudanthias hangapiko) is the latest new species for Rapa Nui, commonly know as Easter Island, one of the world's most isolated inhabited islands.
Showing a clearly dimorphism, with males being slightly bigger and redish than females, these fishes are tiny, with around 3 to 4.5 cm in length. These fishes were collected at 80 m depth on Hanga Piko, a mesophotic coral ecosystem near the coast of Rapa Nui, hence its name, for the location where it were collected.
- A Rapa Nui Fairy Basslet aggregation on a rocky mesophotic coral ecosystem at Rapa Nui (Easter Island) at 80 m depth.
This fish is one of four new species that were documented from a pair of technical dives at a single location in Rapa Nui, as result of a international research collaboration, emphasizing the high number of undescribed species likely still unknown in these deep ecosystems. It is also, the first record of the genus in Rapa Nui, which hosts the second-highest level of endemism in both shallow and deep-water fishes.
Foto: Male (upper) and female (lower) Photos by LA Rocha.
Reference (Open Access): Shepherd et al., 2021 Pseudanthias hangapiko, a new anthiadine serranid (Teleostei, Serranidae, Anthiadinae) from Rapa Nui (Easter Island). ZooKeys.
