A rather trippy-looking fish discovered by scuba-diving operators in Ambon has been classified as an entirely new species by scientists, it was reported on Wednesday.
After DNA testing, the fish, named “psychedelica,” was declared a new species but not a new genus, as some had hoped, Science Daily said in a statement.
Quoting University of Washington’s Ted Pietsch, the first to describe the new species in scientific literature and thus the one to select the name, Science Daily said “psychedelica” was the perfect name for the uniquely colored fish that is “a swirl of tan and peach zebra stripes and behaves in ways contrary to its brethren.”
“Psychedelica was perhaps even more apt given the cockamamie way the fish swim, some with so little control they look intoxicated and should be cited for DUI [driving under the influence],” the Web site added.
Maluku Divers said on its Web site that a specimen was first found by dive guide Toby Fadirsyair some 15 years ago, but since then further examples of the species had remained elusive. In January 2008, an adult fish was spotted by two of the diving operator’s co-owners, and Pietsch was eventually called in to help them identify the fish.
The coloring led David Hall, a wildlife photographer, to speculate that the fish was mimicking corals. Hall produced photos for the new scientific paper showing corals the animals may be mimicking, Science Daily reported...[JakartaGlobe.com]
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