New records of the slender barracudina Stemonosudis molesta (Marshall, 1955) (Aulopiformes: Paralepididae) from southern Pacific and Indian oceans Zootaxa

The rare barracudina Stemonosudis molesta (Marshall, 1955) was described based on a single juvenile specimen from New Zealand and it has remained little-known. From natural history collections, we identified 15 juvenile specimens collected from the southeastern Indian and southern Pacific oceans during exploratory surveys in the 1960s. In the newly identified specimens, we observed a well-developed ventral adipose fin between the anus and anal fin origin, a diagnostic character for the genus Stemonosudis and thus confirm placement of S. molesta in the genus. Here, we propose new diagnostic characters for the species and describe ontogenetic changes in morphology. The new specimens also extend the distribution of S. molesta from the type locality eastward to Chile and westward to southern Australia.