Scales of head, predorsal region, breast, belly, uppermost
part of back and bases of caudal and pectoral
fins cycloid, remainder of body scales ctenoid.
Head entirely scaled except lips, snout tip, preorbital
region, lower jaw and chin; preopercle scales
smaller than body scales and tend to be embedded,
especially in smaller specimens; sensory pores absent
on head, but tracks of well developed papillae
arranged as shown in Fig. 9.
First dorsal fin slightly shorter than second dorsal
in adults and juveniles; depressed posterior rays of
first dorsal fin extending slightly beyond origin of
second dorsal fin in adults and about even with origin
in specimens less than about 60 mm SL; depressed
posterior rays of second dorsal fin extending
about two thirds length of caudal peduncle in
large adults, but usually only half length of peduncle
or less in smaller specimens; sixth or seventh
spine of first dorsal fin tallest, 10.4 (11.5-12.2)
percent of SL; last 2-3 rays of second dorsal fin
tallest, 14.5 (12.0-15.9) percent of SL; penultimate
anal ray tallest, 14.6 (10.5-15.0) percent of SL;
pectoral-fin length 22.9 (19.7-22.5) percent of SL;
pelvic-fin length 21.1 (18.6-25.9) percent of SL;
depressed pelvic fin tips falling well short of anus.
Caudal peduncle relatively elongate, its length 18.9
(18.2-25.7) percent of SL, and depth 14.6 (12.4-
14.8) percent of SL. Caudal-fin rounded, its length
25.2 (22.1-26.3) percent of SL.
C o l o u r i n l i f e : Juveniles brown dorsally,
grading to pale yellow on side of body with series
of 10, large red-brown squares in midlateral row;
pair of oblique brown bands from lower rear corner
of eye to lower margin of operculum; additional
brown stripe just above and parallel to previous
pair, crossing opercle and joining dark brown triangular
mark on pectoral-fin base; fins translucent
to slightly dusky with 3 large reddish spots at base
of second dorsal fin, and smaller reddish brown
spots on remainder of fin and faint spotting on
caudal fins; pelvic fin white and pectoral fins
translucent. Intermediate individuals (approxi-mately 40-65 mm SL, Fig. 7) darker overall with
juvenile bars replaced by complex pattern of irregular
spots and blotches on pale golden yellow background;
oblique dark bands on the head (as described
for juveniles) more intense and dark marking
on pectoral-fin base particularly dark, highlighted
by yellow areas dorsally and ventrally; median
fins generally dusky with whitish margins;
first dorsal fin with faint spotting; second dorsal fin
with 3-4 large reddish spots near base; caudal fin
mainly dark grey; anal fin dusky grey with yellowish
basal portion surrounding 3-4 large dark
blotches; pectoral and pelvic fins translucent, except
individual rays frequently brown or grey.
Large specimens (> 89 mm SL) generally purplish
brown with darker brown blotches, mottling, and
bands (pattern similar to that shown in Fig. 7); fins
dusky purplish with spotting evident on dorsal,
anal, and caudal fin; pelvic fins purplish grey; pectoral
fins translucent with dark grey rays.
C o l o u r i n a l c o h o l : large specimens (in excess
of about 89 mm SL, including holotype) overall
dark brown on body and median fins with very
faint indication of pattern shown in Fig. 7 of live
individuals; dark spotting on median fins evident
when specimen illuminated from behind; head
dark brown dorsally, lighter brown on opercle and
preopercle, grading to dusky whitish on ventral
portions and adjacent breast; pair of diagonal, dark
brown bands from lower edge of eye to lower margin
of opercle; similar band across middle of opercle,
more or less continuous with prominent dark
mark on pectoral-fin base; pelvic fins dark grey;
pectoral fins translucent with greyish rays.
Juvenile (less than 40 mm SL) yellowish tan to
brown, grading to yellowish white or tan on ventral
parts; about 10 evenly spaced, dark brown squares
midlaterally on side of body, increasingly obscure
with growth, particularly on anterior half; marking
on caudal-fin base usually more vivid and enlarged;
oblique bands on head and prominent dark marking
on pectoral-fin base similar to those of large
specimens described above.
Comparisons: Mogurnda kaimana is most similar
to M pardalis Allen and Renyaan, 1996 (Fig. 10)
from the Triton Lakes (Lake Kamaka), which lieapproximately 38 km southeast of the Lake Furnusu
Basin. Although relatively close to each other,
the lakes are situated in a region of rugged karst
topography characterized by a maze of non-connected
basins and valleys, frequently with subterranean
drainage.
Both species are characterized by a concave snout
profile with a more dorsally flattened head compared
to most members of the genus. However, the
two species exhibit distinct differences in lateral
and predorsal scale counts, body depth, head
length, interorbital width, pelvic-fin length, and
caudal-peduncle depth (Tables II & IV). In addition,
preserved specimens of M. kaimana are uniformly
dark compared to the lighter mottled pattern
of M. pardalis.
Distribution and habitat: The new species is currently
known only from the type locality, Lake Furnusu
(Fig. 11), which lies approximately 15 km
northeast of Kaimana, West Papua Province (Fig.
1). The lake is situated at an elevation of 15 m and
is only about 1.5 km from the sea, but is separatedfrom it by a steep ridge that rises to an altitude of
about 500-550 m. The lake occupies a scenic basin
that is approximately five km long and 1-2 km
wide. It is completely surrounded by steep ridges
without any connection to the nearby sea.
Drainage appears to be subterranean, which is typical
for other lakes in this region (e.g. Triton Lakes,
lying 40 km to the southeast) that consists of
rugged limestone karst. The current Google Earth
satellite image of the lake basin reveals that it is
mainly dry or swampy, but the water level at the
time of our collection was extremely high and most
of the basin was filled with a large continuous lake
with swampy margins. Judging from snorkel observations
and partially submerged trees we estimate
the shoreline was approximately 3-4 m above normal
levels. Most paratypes were collected adjacent
to a rocky shore among aquatic vegetation and submerged
Pandanus roots. Four other species were
present in the lake, which are provisionally identified
as Neosilurus brevidorsalis (Günther 1867)
(Plotosidae), Craterocephalus sp. (Atherinidae),
Melanotaenia mairasi Allen & Hadiaty 2011
(Melanotaeniidae), and Oxyeleotris nullipora
Roberts 1978.
Etymology: The species is named kaimana with
reference to the nearby town of Kaimana, which is
the capital of Kaimana Regency, within which the
type locality is situated.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We are especially indebted to Richard Sneider and
Fabian Oberfeld, who provided financial sponsorship,
excellent companionship, and field assistance.
Special thanks are also due to the local government
and the masyarakat adat (traditional communities)
of Kaimana and Arguni Bay for allowing us to visit
their spectacular homeland and for their commitment
to preserve it. Max Ammer (Raja Ampat Research
& Conservation Centre) provided his piloting
expertise in an ultralight aircraft and collecting
assistance during the visit to Lake Furnusu and
other excursions during the expedition. We also
thank our LIPI colleagues Daisy Wowor, Ristiyanti
Marwoto, Mulyadi, Sopian, and Samuel Renyaan
(University of Cendrawasih) for their advice and
collecting assistance. Ken & Josephine Wiedenhoeft
and their crew on Puti Raja were excellent
hosts for the 2010 Arguni Expedition and provided
essential logistic assistance. We are also indebted
to Nimrod (Roy) Tafre from the Kaimana Spatial
Planning Department and Zeth Parinding from
the Kaimana Department of Nature Conservation
for their help in making our expedition possible
and for collection assistance. The staff of the
Kaimana office of Conservation International (CI)
was very helpful with planning issues and communication
with local authorities. We also thank the
Paine Family Trust and William Mathews Brooks
for funding support for this taxonomic work. Last,
but not least, we are most grateful to Mark Erdmann
(CI) for his tireless organizational efforts and
essential assistance during the Arguni Bay expedition.
He also reviewed the manuscript.