Electronic Journal of Ichthyology October 2008 2: 56 - 66 56 PUNTIUS PADAMYA, A NEW SPECIES OF CYPRINID FISH FROM MYANMAR (TELEOSTEI: CYPRINIDAE) Sven O. Kullander 1 and Ralf Britz 2 1 Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Swedish Museum of Natural History, PO Box 50007, SE-104 05 Stockholm, Sweden. E-mail: sven.kullander@nrm.se. 2 Department of Zoology, The Natural History Museum, London, SW7 5BD, United King- dom. E-mail: r.britz@nhm.ac.uk Accepted: March, 6 2008 Abstract: Puntius padamya, new species, is described from the type locality near Mandalay, in the Ayeyarwaddy River drainage, Myanmar. Referred specimens are reported from the lower Chindwin River. Puntius padamya is distinguished from other species of the P. con- chonius species group above all by the colour pattern. Males possess a broad red band from the head to the base of the caudal fin, abdominal scales with dark margins, and hyaline dorsal, anal and pectoral fins with conspicuous black spots and black distal margins. Both sexes pos- sess a vertically elongate dark humeral blotch and a small, inconspicuous dark blotch on the side of the caudal peduncle. Puntius padamya is a well known aquarium fish, commercialized as “Odessa barb”. Keywords: Cypriniformes – Taxonomy – Odessa barb – Ayeyarwaddy River – Chindwin River Introduction The small-sized south Asian cyprinid species contained in the Puntius conchonius species group, diagnosed by Taki et al. (1978), are popular ornamental fishes with about 10 species regularly available. One of these species is generally known as the “Odessa barb” or “ruby barb” and was first introduced in the aquarium hobby in the early 1970s. It was said to have first ap- peared in pet fish enthusiasts’ circles in Odessa, Ukraine, from where it got the name, and was treated later variously as an undescribed species of unknown origin (Sterba, 1988), as a subspecies of P. ticto (Stallknecht, 1973), or as P. conchonius (Axelrod et al., 1980). No wild material has been known until recently, when the junior author came across the species in the vicin- ity of Mandalay, in central Myanmar. This paper reports on the first known locality of the “Odessa barb”, and provides a formal description of the species. Materials and methods Morphometry. Measurements were taken point to point with digital callipers measur- ing to 0.01 mm, rounded to nearest 0.1 mm. Standard length, head length, and snout length are taken from the tip of the snout to the caudal-fin base, posterior opercular mar- gin, and anterior orbital margin, respec- tively. Predorsal, prepelvic and preanal lengths are taken from the tip of the snout to the anterior base of each fin. Head depth is taken immediately behind the orbit. Body depth is taken at the origin of the dorsal fin. Dorsal-, pectoral-, pelvic-, and anal-fin lengths are taken from the base of the first ray to the distal tip of the longest ray. Caudal peduncle length is taken from the base of the last anal fin ray to the middle of the base of the caudal fin. Lateral line scale counts in- clude only scales on the body. Scales in the lateral row equates the lateral line scale count, or, when the lateral line is abbrevi- ated, includes the lateral line scales and pos-