First record of the west African goatfish, pseudupeneus prayensis (actinopterygii: Perciformes: Mullidae), off the tunisian coast (central mediterranean)

Abstract

Two specimens of the west African goatfish, Pseudupeneus prayensis (Cuvier, 1829), were found for the first time off the Tunisian coast, in northern area. They constituted the third Mediterranean record of this fish. Both specimens were studied and described, and some biological observations were reported. Same taxonomic characters were concomitantly determined on two west African goatfish caught off the coast of Senegal, for comparison. The occurrence of Pseudupeneus prayensis in the area and the Mediterranean Sea is discussed and commented.