Ichthyofauna of Sungai Merbok Mangrove Forest Reserve, northwest Peninsular Malaysia, and its adjacent marine waters Author Zainal Abidin, Danial Hariz Author Lavoué, Sébastien Author Mohd Abu Hassan Alshari, Norli Fauzani Author Mohd. Nor, Siti Azizah Author A. Rahim, Masazurah Author Mohammed Akib, Noor Adelyna text Check List 2021 2021-04-06 17 2 601 631 http://dx.doi.org/10.15560/17.2.601 journal article 10.15560/17.2.601 1809-127X Stolephorus tri (Bleeker, 1852) Figure 3F Material examined. MALAYSIA • 1, 94 mm TL; Kedah State , Kuala Kedah , Kuala Muda Whispering Market ; 05.578°N , 100.341°E ; 6 Dec. 2018 ; Danial H. Zainal Abidin , Norli F.M.A.H. Alshari leg.; USMFC (82) 00039 . Identification. Species recently rediagnosed by Hata et al. (2020) ; a small species of anchovy (maximum TL about 100 mm ); body elongated and compressed; large mouth, its corner behind the eye; anal fin short with three unbranched and 15–19 branched fin rays, its origin below about middle of dorsal fin base; gill rakers 32–39 (on first gill arch); posterior tip of the maxilla pointed reaching or beyond posterior margin of opercle; small predorsal scute and pelvic scute with spine, belly not keeled; small needle-like prepelvic scutes 4–6, no post-pelvic scutes; body light greyish/brownish with a silver stripe from the opercular margin to caudal-fin base; a pair of blackish patches behind occiput followed by a pair of black pigment lines on back; caudal fin whitish-yellow with black margins; no black spots on suborbital area or lower-jaw tip. Figure 5. Photographs of a selection of fish specimens (in lateral view) from the Merbok river estuary and adjacent waters. A. Pampus argenteus . B. Terapon jarbua . C. Terapon theraps . D. Lepturacanthus savala . E. Cynoglossus cynoglossus . F. Cynoglossus arel . G. Pseudorhombus elevates . H. Grammoplites scaber . I. Trichosomus trachinoides . J. Arius maculatus . K. Plotosus canius . L. Arothron reticularis . M. Triacanthus nieuhofii . Stolephorus tri is identifiable from all other species of Stolephorus (except S. dubiosus ) occurring in the Merbok estuary by the spine-like predorsal and pelvic scutes. Stolephorus tri can be distinguished from S. dubiosus by its lower number of gill rakers. A common coastal species which frequently occurs in brackish environments. Stolephorus tri is distributed in the central part of the Indo West Pacific region ( Hata et al. 2020 ).