The identity of Pristolepis malabarica (Günther 1864) and Pristolepis procerus Plamoottil 2017, its junior synonym (Anabantiformes: Pristolepididae)

The confusion surrounding the identity of Pristolepis malabarica, until now considered to be a synonym of P. marginata, is cleared up using morphometric, meristic and genetic data generated from topotypic specimens. Pristolepis malabarica can be clearly distinguished from P. marginata in having fewer anal-fin spines, and by the colour of the dorsal-, anal- and caudal fin-margins. Both species are also separated by a raw pair-wise genetic distance of 11.513.2% in mitochondrial COI sequences. Pristolepis procerus, described from the Chaliyar River, lacks characters that distinguish it from P. malabarica, and is hence considered a junior synonym of the latter. Distributed on both sides of the Palghat Gap, a significant biogeographic barrier, Pristolepis malabarica is likely the widest-ranging species of the genus in the Western Ghats.