New Philippine butterflyfish <i>Roa rumsfeldi</i> at the California Academy of Sciences (IMAGE)

California Academy of Sciences

New Philippine butterflyfish <i>Roa rumsfeldi</i> at the California Academy of Sciences

Caption

A newly described species of brown-and-white Philippine butterflyfish -- the charismatic Roa rumsfeldi -- made a fantastic, 7,000-mile journey before surprising scientists with its unknown status. Live specimens collected from 360 feet beneath the ocean's surface in the Philippine's Verde Island Passage escaped special notice until a single black fin spine tipped off aquarium biologists back in San Francisco. Deep-diving researchers from the California Academy of Sciences' Hope for Reefs team -- with genetic sequencing help from a parent-son team -- share their discovery of a fifth species of Roa this week in ZooKeys.

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© 2017 Luiz Rocha and the California Academy of Sciences

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