New Distributional Records for Monacanthid Fishes (Tetradontiformes: Monacanthidae) from North East Arabian Sea, Western Indian Ocean

Fishes of family Monacanthidae, popularly known as filefishes are a specialized group of fishes with low commercial importance in the studied region barring Aluterus monoceros, which has emerged as commercial fish in the region in last few years. Three species, namely Aluterus scriptus, Stephanolepis diaspros, and Stephanolepis auratus, have been reported for the first time from the region, adding to the monacanthid diversity of the region. Morphometric assessment of the four species revealed several discriminating attributes capable of separating the species from each other.