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Temperate lands of the Southern Hemisphere have freshwater f ish faunas that are dominated by a series of lower euteleostean genera that seem to fall into three clusters: 1) Retropinna, Stokellia and Prototroctes, forming a family Retropinnidae; 2) Aplochi- ton, Lovettia, Galaxias, Neochanna, Brachygalaxias, Paragalaxias and Galaxiella in- cluded in either a single family Galaxiidae or split between Galaxiidae and Aplochito- nidae (the latter including Lovettia); and 3) Lepidogalaxias. Although the generic classif ication seems relatively well-settled, the familial allocations and phylogenetic relationships among these three groups of genera have been much discussed in recent decades, dating back into the 1960s. There is wide agreement that Retropinna, Stokel- lia, and Prototroctes are closely related to each other; that the other genera apart from Lepidogalaxias are also closely related to each other and well separated from the ret- ropinnids; but what Lepidogalaxias is related to has been a subject of considerable debate and highly divergent phylogenetic hypotheses for many years. Our study pre- sents extensive mor phological information, mostly osteological, that seeks to clarify all of these relationships. Using the Northern Hemisphere Osmeridae as the principal out- group, our data support the historical relationships discussed above, for all but Lepido- galaxias, though we also suggest that Aplochiton and Lovettia are quite deeply sepa- rated from the galaxiid genera. Our conclusions relating to Lepidogalaxias are highly equivocal, given the large numbers of autapomor phic characters in the analysis and the lack of convincing synapomor phies shared by that genus and other southern lower euteleosteans, we conclude that Lepidogalaxias is deeply separated from the other southern genera. Incor porating additional molecular information, we conclude that Le- pidogalaxias is possibly the sister group of all other euteleostean f ishes, a conclusion that also emerges more explicitly from other, recent molecular studies of this highly controversial taxon. It has so many distinctive mor phological characters that it seems diff icult, if not impossible, to identify its relationships from osteology alone, though the extent of autapomor phy may result in part from our use of Osmeridae as the prin- cipal outgroup. Further studies comparing Lepidogalaxias with other outgroups, or per- haps the use of other types of mor phological characters, may reveal more of its rela- tionships.

Key to species of Galaxiella (adapted from McDowall & Frankenberg 1981) 1. Usually 6 pelvic fin rays (range 5–7); usually 10–11 pectoral fin rays (range 9–12); usually 16–19 total gill rakers (range 16– 20); usually 40–42 vertebrae (range 38–43). (Western Australia from near Margaret River in the west, Albany to the east and north of Perth)............................................................ Galaxiella munda McDowall 1978 - Usually 5 pelvic fin rays (range 4–6); usually 11–13 pectoral fin rays (range 10–14); usually 14–18 total gill rakers (range 12– 20) and usually 36–40 vertebrae (range 34–43).............................................................. 2 2. Usually 14 caudal fin rays (range 12–15); 8 pores in preopercular-suborbital-supramaxillary series; 2 distinct lateral longitudinal dark stripes. (Western Australia from Augusta in the west and Albany to the east and north of Perth)...................................................................................... Galaxiella nigrostriata (Shipway 1953) - Usually 13 caudal fin rays (range 11–15); 7 pores in preopercular-suborbital-supramaxillary series; 3 distinct lateral longitudinal dark stripes (mid stripe and particularly dorsal stripe can be poorly defined in females)............................ 3 3. Usually 39 vertebrae (range 36–41); origin of dorsal fin distinctly posterior to that of anal fin, with horizontal distance between dorsal fin and anal fin origins 1.4–3.8 % of SL (females 1.4–2.8 % (range 0.0– 3.8), males 2.4–3.8 % (range 0.52–5.67)); caudal peduncle of moderate length, 21.3–23.8 % of SL (females 21.3–23.1 % (range 18.4–25.5), males 21.9–23.8 % (range 20.3 – 26.0)); adult females up to 32.7 mm SL (mean 27.2) and adult males up to 28.2 mm SL (mean 23.6); ventral markings distinct, most commonly a ‘v’-shaped dark mark originating in the isthmus and extending as two parallel dotted lines (sometimes discontinuous) to the pelvic fin bases. (South-eastern Australia from Bairnsdale in eastern Victoria to south-east Melbourne, including Flinders Island and north-eastern and north-western Tasmania)................. Galaxiella pusilla (Mack 1936) - Usually 36 vertebrae (range 34–38); origin of dorsal fin is more or less in line with that of anal fin (particularly females), with the horizontal distance between dorsal fin and anal fin origins usually 0.0– 2.7 % of SL (females 0.0– 1.4 % (range - 2.5–2.8), males 1.3–2.7 % (range - 2.6–3.9); caudal peduncle relatively short, usually 19.6–21.9 % of SL (females 19.6–21.2 % (range 17.2–23.8), males 20.1–21.9 % (range 17.9–24.4)); adult females up to 30.6 mm SL (mean 24.2) and adult males up to 24.0 mm SL (mean 20.2); ventral markings reduced, most commonly a small number of dark blotches in the vicinity of the isthmus. (South-eastern Australia from Barwon Downs in western Victoria to near the Coorong in south-eastern South Australia)............................................................................ Galaxiella toourtkoourt new species.

Galaxiella pusilla Mack, 1936 Dwarf galaxias Tables 2 to 3; Figs. 3 to 4, 9b, 10 b, 11 and 13 Galaxias pusillus Mack, 1936: 101 (holotype NMV A. 97, paratypes NMV A. 98 (1), NMV A. 388���390 (3); type locality ���Cardinia Creek, about 30 miles east of Melbourne, Victoria���)��� Massola 1938: 129; Whitley 1939: 268; Stokell 1945: 126; Shipway 1953; 173; McDowall 1971: 36; Dixon 1972: 121; McDowall 1973: 193; Andrews 1976 (partim): 324. Galaxias pucillus ��� Mack, 1936: 101 (misprint in legend of Fig. 2). Brachygalaxias pusillus ��� Scott 1942: 55; Stokell 1954: 412; Whitley 1956 a: 34; 1956 b: 39 (partim); 1957: 6; 1960: 29; 1964: 35; Scott 1966: 246 (partim); Frankenberg 1966 a: 162; 1966 b: 32; 1967: 227 (partim); 1968: 172; Lake 1971: 20 (partim); Scott 1971: 3 (partim); Dixon 1972: 121; Frankenberg 1974: 119; Pollard 1980: 348 (partim). Brachygalaxias pusillus pusillus ��� Munro 1957: 18 (partim); Frankenberg 1969: 185 (partim); Frankenberg 1971: 94 (partim); McDowall 1973: 193; Scott 1971: 3. Brachygalaxias pusillus flindersiensis Scott, 1971: 6 (holotype: QVM 1969: 5: 35 (previously 1969.5.25a); paratypes: AMS I. 16158 -001 (1), BMNH 1972.1. 27.1 (1), QVM 1969: 5: 34 (12); type locality: ���Lackrana, Flinders Island, Furneaux Group, Bass Strait���);��� Green 1974: 3; Frankenberg 1974: 114. Brachygalaxias pusillus tasmaniensis Scott, 1971: 3 (holotype: QVM 1971.5. 48 (listed in error as 1970 / 5 / 25 a in original description); paratypes: AMS I. 16159 -001 (1), BMNH 1972.1. 27.2 (1), QVM 1971: 5: 50 (11); type locality ���from a soak from a dam flowing towards the coast (northward) on Marengo, Waterhouse Estate, Dorset, Tasmania���); Green 1974: 3; Frankenberg 1974: 114. Galaxiella pusilla ��� McDowall 1978 b: 309; Lake 1978: 26 (partim); Backhouse & Vanner 1978: 129 (partim); McDowall 1980: 55 (partim); McDowall & Frankenberg 1981: 552 (partim); Backhouse 1983: 6 (partim); Cadwallader & Backhouse 1983: 75 (partim); Humphries 1983: 4 (partim); Johnson et al. 1983: 50; Last et al. 1983: 201 (partim); Merrick & Schmida 1984: 98 (partim); Humphries 1986: 133; Allen 1989: 44 (partim), 89; Berra & Allen 1989: 293 (partim); Breen et al. 1989: 1; Paxton et al. 1989: 179 (partim); Fulton 1990: 39 (partim); Koehn & Morison 1990: 20 (partim); Andrews 1991: 59 (partim); Pen et al. 1993: 848 (partim); Humphries 1995: 1159 (partim); Unmack & Paras 1995: 398 (partim); Westbury 1995: 1 (partim); Chilcott & Humphries 1996: 147 (partim); McDowall & Fulton 1996: 70 (partim); Koster 1997: 9 (partim); Raadik & Zampatti 1998: 6; McDowall 1999: 936; 2000: 1123 (partim); Waters et al. 2000: 794; Unmack 2001: 1060 (partim); Allen et al. 2002: 111 (partim); Fields 2002: 3 (partim); Koster 2003: 268 (partim); McDowall & Waters 2004: 24; Romanowski 2004: 80 (partim); Kuiter 2005: 162 (partim); Hardie et al. 2006: 238; McDowall 2006: 356 (partim); Paxton et al. 2006: 408 (partim); Raadik 2006: 139; Threatened Species Section 2006: 44 (partim); Galeotti et al. 2010: 13 (partim); Saddlier et al. 2010: 3 (partim); Stoessel 2010: 2; McDowall & Burridge 2011: 9; Burridge et al. 2012: 313; Hammer et al. 2012: 62; Crook & Gillanders 2013: 207 (partim); Hammer et al. 2013: 70 (partim); King et al. 2013: 165 (partim); Koehn & Kennard 2013: 91; Kuiter 2013: 84 (partim), images pp 84-85, images top p. 86, images p. 87; Lieschke et al. 2013 a: 15; Lieschke et al. 2013 b: 235; Lintermans 2013 c: 286 (partim); Raadik 2014: 160 (partim); Galeotti et al. 2015: 189. Galaxiella pusilla ���east region������ Coleman et al. 2010: 1911; Unmack et al. 2012: 1; Coleman et al. 2013: 1821., Published as part of Coleman, Rhys A., Hoffmann, Ary A. & Raadik, Tarmo A., 2015, A review of Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Teleostei: Galaxiidae) in south-eastern Australia with a description of a new species, pp. 243-281 in Zootaxa 4021 (2) on pages 266-267, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4021.2.2, http://zenodo.org/record/236167, {"references":["Mack, G. (1936) Victorian species of the genus Galaxias, with descriptions of two new species. Memoirs of the National Museum Victoria, 9, 98 - 101.","Massola, A. (1938) Description of a new species of Galaxia. The Aquarium Journal, 11, 129 - 130.","Whitley, G. P. (1939) Studies in ichthyology No. 12. Records of the Australian Museum, 20, 264 - 277. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.3853 / j. 0067 - 1975.20.1939.576","Stokell, G. (1945) The systematic arrangement of the New Zealand Galaxiidae. Part I. Generic and subgeneric classification. Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 75, 124 - 137.","Shipway, B. (1953) Additional records of fishes occurring in the fresh waters of Western Australia. Western Australian Naturalist, 3, 173 - 177.","McDowall, R. M. (1971) The galaxiid fishes of South America. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 50, 33 - 73. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / j. 1096 - 3642.1971. tb 00751. x","Dixon, J. M. (1972) Catalogue of galaxiid types (Pisces: Galaxiidae) in the National Museum of Victoria, Australia. Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria, 33, 121 - 122.","McDowall, R. M. (1973) Limitation of the genus Brachygalaxias Eigenmann, 1928 (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 3, 193 - 197. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1080 / 03036758.1973.10430601","Andrews, A. P. (1976) A revision of the family Galaxiidae (Pisces) in Tasmania. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 27, 297 - 349. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1071 / MF 9760297","Scott, E. O. G. (1942) Description of Tasmanian mud trout, Galaxias (Galaxias) upcheri sp. nov.: with a note on the genus Bachygalaxias Eigenmann, 1924, and its occurrence in Australia. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum, 1, 51 - 57.","Stokell, G. (1954) Contributions to galaxiid taxonomy. Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 82, 411 - 418.","Whitley, G. P. (1956 a) The story of Galaxias. Australian Museum Magazine, 12, 30 - 34.","Scott, E. O. G. (1966) The genera of the Galaxiidae. Australian Zoologist, 13, 244 - 258.","Frankenberg, R. S. (1966 a) Fishes of the family Galaxiidae. Australian Natural History, 15, 161 - 164.","Lake, J. S. (1971) Freshwater Fishes and Rivers of Australia. Nelson, Melbourne, 61 pp.","Scott, E. O. G. (1971) On the occurrence in Tasmania and on Flinders Island of Brachygalaxias Eigenmann, 1928 (Pisces: Galaxiidae) with descriptions of two new subspecies. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum, 37, 1 - 14.","Frankenberg, R. S. (1974) Native freshwater fish. In: Williams, W. D. (Ed.), Biogeography and ecology in Tasmania. Monographiae Biolicae, 25, 113 - 140. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1007 / 978 - 94 - 010 - 2337 - 5 _ 6","Pollard, J. (Ed.) (1980) G. P. Whitley's Handbook of Australian Fishes. Jack Pollard Publishing, North Sydney, 629 pp.","Munro, I. S. R. (1957) Handbook of Australian fishes. No. 7. Australian. Fisheries Newsletter, 16, 15 - 18.","Frankenberg, R. S. (1969) Studies on the evolution of galaxiid fishes with particular reference to the Australian fauna. PhD Thesis, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 205 pp.","Frankenberg, J. (1971) Nature conservation in Victoria. Victorian National Parks Association, Melbourne, 145 pp.","Green, R. H. (1974) A catalogue of the type material in the Queen Victoria Museum, Launceston. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum, 52, 1 - 15.","McDowall, R. M. (1978 b) Sexual dimorphism in an Australian galaxiid. Australian Zoologist, 19, 309 - 314.","Lake, J. S. (1978) Australian Freshwater Fishes. Nelson, Melbourne, 160 pp.","Backhouse, G. N. & Vanner, R. W. (1978) Observations on the biology of the dwarf galaxiid, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Victorian Naturalist, 95, 128 - 132.","McDowall, R. M. (1980) 10 Family Galaxiidae Galaxiids. In: McDowall, R. M. (Ed.), Freshwater Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Reed Books, Sydney, pp. 55 - 69.","McDowall, R. M. & Frankenberg, R. S. (1981) The galaxiid fishes of Australia. Records of the Australian Museum, 33, 443 - 605. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.3853 / j. 0067 - 1975.33.1981.195","Cadwallader, P. L. & Backhouse, G. N. (1983) A Guide to the Freshwater Fish of Victoria. Victorian Government Printing Office, Melbourne, 249 pp.","Humphries, P. (1983) Aspects of the biology of the dwarf galaxiid, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Salmoniformes: Galaxiidae). BSc (Hons) Thesis, Monash University, Clayton, 94 pp.","Johnson, C. R., Ratowsky, D. A. & White, R. W. G. (1983) Multivariate analysis of the phenotypic relationships of the species of Paragalaxias and Galaxias (Pisces: Galaxiidae) in Tasmania. Journal of Fish Biology, 23, 49 - 63. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / j. 1095 - 8649.1983. tb 02881. x","Last, P. R., Scott, E. O. G. & Talbot, F. H. (1983) Fishes of Tasmania. Tasmanian Fisheries Development Authority, Hobart, 563 pp.","Merrick, J. R. & Schmida, G. E. (1984) Australian Freshwater Fishes: Biology and Management. J. R. Merrick, North Ryde, N. S. W., 409 pp.","Humphries, P. (1986) Observations on the ecology of Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Salmoniformes: Galaxiidae) in Diamond Creek, Victoria. Proceeding of the Royal Society of Victoria, 98, 133 - 137.","Berra, T. M. & Allen, G. R. (1989) Clarification of the differences between Galaxiella nigrostriata (Shipway, 1953) and Galaxiella munda McDowall, 1978 (Pisces: Galaxiidae) from Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, 14, 293 - 297.","Breen, P. F., Condina, P., Donnelly, A. & Muir, S. (1989) Pusilla Flats (Tirhatuan Wetlands). Ecology, development and management strategy. Technical Report No. 33. Dandenong Valley Authority, Dandenong, 42 pp.","Paxton, J. R., Hoese, D. F., Allen, G. R. & Hanley, J. E. (1989) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Volume 7. Pisces. Petromyzontidae to Carangidae. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 665 pp.","Fulton, W. (1990) Tasmanian Freshwater Fishes. Fauna of Tasmania handbook no. 7. University of Tasmania, Hobart, 80 pp.","Koehn, J. D. & Morison, A. K. (1990) A review of the conservation status of native freshwater fish in Victoria. Victorian Naturalist, 107, 5 - 12.","Andrews, A. P. (1991) Observations on the Tasmanian mudfish, Galaxias cleaveri (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania, 125, 55 - 59.","Pen, L. J., Gill, H. S., Humphries, P. & Potter, I. C. (1993) Biology of the black-stripe minnow Galaxiella nigrostriata, including comparisons with the other two Galaxiella species. Journal of Fish Biology, 43, 847 - 863. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / j. 1095 - 8649.1993. tb 01160. x","Humphries, P. (1995) Life history, food and habitat of southern pygmy perch, Nannoperca australis, in the Macquarie River, Tasmania. Marine and Freshwater Research, 46, 1159 - 1169. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1071 / MF 9951159","Unmack, P. J. & Paras, G. J. (1995) Galaxiella pusilla: around Melbourne, going, going, nearly gone. Fishes of Sahul, 9, 398 - 400.","Westbury, T. (1995) Conservation ecology of the dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Galaxiidae), with implications for management. BSc (Hons) Thesis, La Trobe University, Bundoora, 84 pp.","Chilcott, S. J. & Humphries, P. (1996) Freshwater fish of northeast Tasmania with notes on the dwarf galaxias. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, 103, 145 - 149.","McDowall, R. M. & Fulton, W. (1996) Family Galaxiidae. In: McDowall, R. M. (Ed.), Freshwater Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Reed books, Sydney, pp. 52 - 77.","Koster, W. (1997) A study of the interactions between dwarf galaxias (Galaxiella pusilla), southern pygmy perch (Nannoperca australis) and eastern gambusia (Gambusia holbrooki). BSc (Hons) Thesis, Deakin University, Clayton, 88 pp.","Raadik, T. A. & Zampatti, B. (1998) An assessment of barriers to fish migration in the lower Dandenong and Eumemmering Creek systems. Report to Melbourne Water. Freshwater Ecology Division, Marine and Freshwater Resources Institute, Melbourne, 27 pp.","McDowall, R. M. (1999) Caudal skeleton in Galaxias and allied genera (Teleostei: Galaxiidae). Copeia, 4, 932 - 929. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.2307 / 1447968","Waters, J. M., Lopez, J. A. & Wallis, G. P. (2000) Molecular phylogenetics and biogeography of Galaxiid fishes (Osteichthyes: Galaxiidae): dispersal, vicariance, and the position of Lepidogalaxias salamandroides. Systematic Biology, 49, 777 - 795. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1080 / 106351500750049824","Allen, G. R., Midgley, S. H. & Allen, M. (2002) Field Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Australia. Western Australian Museum, Perth, 394 pp.","Fields, L. (2002) Bringing the Eastern Little Galaxia back to Melbourne. ANGFA Victoria VICNEWS May, 3 - 4.","Koster, W. (2003) Threatened species of the world: Galaxiella pusilla (Mack 1936) (Galaxiidae). Environmental Biology of Fishes, 68, 268. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1023 / A: 1027339104903","McDowall, R. M. & Waters, J. M. (2004) Phylogenetic relationships in a small group of diminutive galaxiid fishes and the evolution of sexual dimorphism. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 34, 23 - 57. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1080 / 03014223.2004.9517762","Romanowski, N. (2004) Notes on dwarf galaxias Galaxiella pusilla. Fishes of Sahul, 18, 80 - 86.","Kuiter, R. H. (2005) More on dwarf galaxias. Fishes of Sahul, 19, 160 - 163.","Hardie, S., Jackson, J. E., Barmuta, L. A. & White, R. W. G. (2006) Status of galaxiid fishes in Tasmania, Australia: conservation listings, threats and management issues. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 16, 235 - 250. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1002 / aqc. 722","McDowall, R. M. (2006) Crying wolf, crying foul, or crying shame: alien salmonids and a biodiversity crisis in the southern cool-temperate galaxioid fishes? Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 16, 233 - 422. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1007 / s 11160 - 006 - 9017 - 7","Paxton, J. R., Gates, J. E., Bray, D. J. & Hoese, D. F. (2006) Galaxiinae. In Hoese, D. F., Bray, D. J., Paxton, J. R., Allen, G. R. Fishes. 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(2010) Needle in a haystack: assessment of the status of Dwarf Galaxias (Galaxiella pusilla) at six sites in the West Gippsland Region, with reference to a pilot sampling protocol. Client report 2010 / 95 prepared for the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Department of Sustainability and Environment, Heidelberg, Victoria, 19 pp.","McDowall, R. M. & Burridge, C. P. (2011) Osteology and relationships of the southern freshwater lower euteleostean fishes. Zoosystematics and Evolution, 87, 7 - 185. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1002 / zoos. 201000020","Burridge, C. P., McDowall, R. M., Craw, D., Wilson, M. V. H. & Waters, J. M. (2012) Marine dispersal as a pre-requisite for Gondwanan vicariance among elements of the galaxiid fish fauna. Journal of Biogeography, 39, 306 - 321. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / j. 1365 - 2699.2011.02600. x","Crook, D. A. & Gillanders, B. M. (2013) Chapter 8. Age and growth. In: Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes, CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 195 - 221.","Hammer, M. P., Adams, A. & Hughes, J. M. (2013) Chapter 3. Evolutionary processes and biodiversity. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 49 - 79.","King, A. J., Humphries, P. & McCasker, N. G. (2013) Chapter 7. Reproduction and early life history. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 159 - 193.","Koehn, J. D. & Kennard, M. J. (2013) Chapter 4. Habitats. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 81 - 103.","Kuiter, R. H. (2013) Pictorial Guide to Victoria's Freshwater Fishes. Aquatic Photographics, Seaford, 178 pp.","Lieschke, J. A., Dodd, L., Stoessel, D., Raadik, T. A., Steelcable, A., Kitchingman, A. and Ramsey, D. (2013 a) The status of fish populations in Victorian rivers 2004 - 2011 - Part A. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report Series No. 246. Department of Environment and Primary Industries, Heidelberg, Victoria, 147 pp.","Lieschke, J. A., Dodd, L., Stoessel, D., Raadik, T. A., Steelcable, A., Kitchingman, A. & Ramsey, D. (2013 b) The status of fish populations in Victorian rivers 2004 - 2011 - Part B: Individual basin assessments. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report Series No. 247. Department of Environment and Primary Industries, Heidelberg, Victoria, 353 pp.","Lintermans, M. (2013) Chapter 12. Conservation and management. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 283 - 316.","Galeotti, D. M., Castalanelli, M. A., Groth, D. M., McCullough, C. & Lund, M. A. (2015) Genotypic and morphological variation between Galaxiella nigrostriata (Galaxiidae) populations: implications for conservation. Marine and Freshwater Research, 66, 187 - 194. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1071 / MF 13289","Coleman, R. A., Pettigrove, V., Raadik, T. A., Hoffmann, A. A., Miller, A. D. & Carew, M. E. (2010) Microsatellite markers and mtDNA indicate two distinct groups in dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae), a threatened freshwater fish from south-eastern Australia. Conservation Genetics, 11, 1911 - 1928. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1007 / s 10592 - 010 - 0082 - z","Unmack, P. J., Bagley, J. C., Adams, M., Hammer, M. P. & Johnson, J. B. (2012) Molecular phylogeny and phylogeography of the Australian freshwater fish genus Galaxiella, with an emphasis on dwarf galaxias (G. pusilla). PLoS ONE, 7, e 38433. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1371 / journal. pone. 0038433","Coleman, R. A., Weeks, A. R. & Hoffmann, A. A. (2013) Balancing genetic uniqueness and genetic variation in determining conservation and translocation strategies: a comprehensive case study of threatened dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Molecular Ecology, 22, 1820 - 1835. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / mec. 12227"]}

Genus Galaxiella McDowall Gender: feminine. Galaxiella McDowall, 1978: 116. Type species: Galaxias pusillus Mack, 1936: 101. A genus of four valid species endemic to Australia, with two native to south-eastern Australia (including Tasmania) and two native to south-western Australia. Diagnosis (modified from McDowall 1978 a and McDowall & Frankenberg 1981). Small, stocky, horizontallystriped galaxiid fishes with dorsal fin origin usually in line with, or posterior to, anal fin origin (occasionally slightly anterior). Pelvic fins present, usually 5���6 rays (range 4���7); pectoral fins inserted high laterally. Caudal fin rounded, usually with 13���14 segmented rays (range 11���15); caudal peduncle flanges very strongly developed, extending forward ventrally to near anal fin base, but with very few procurrent rays. No submandibular laterosensory pores. No median ethmoid ossification. Postcleithrum present. Epipleural and epineural ribs present; no ossified interneurals. Caudal neural and haemal spines slender spikes, not laterally flattened. Vertebrae few, 34��� 43; branchiostegals few, 3���4. Sexual dimorphism present in two species from south-eastern Australia, including smaller size at maturity, three distinct horizontal black stripes along sides of body and bright orange-red horizontal stripe between lower two black stripes in males., Published as part of Coleman, Rhys A., Hoffmann, Ary A. & Raadik, Tarmo A., 2015, A review of Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Teleostei: Galaxiidae) in south-eastern Australia with a description of a new species, pp. 243-281 in Zootaxa 4021 (2) on page 260, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4021.2.2, http://zenodo.org/record/236167, {"references":["Mack, G. (1936) Victorian species of the genus Galaxias, with descriptions of two new species. Memoirs of the National Museum Victoria, 9, 98 - 101.","McDowall, R. M. (1978 a) A new genus and species of galaxiid fish from Australia (Salmoniformes: Galaxiidae). Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 8, 115 - 124. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1080 / 03036758.1978.10419420","McDowall, R. M. & Frankenberg, R. S. (1981) The galaxiid fishes of Australia. Records of the Australian Museum, 33, 443 - 605. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.3853 / j. 0067 - 1975.33.1981.195"]}

Galaxiella toourtkoourt Coleman & Raadik, new species Little galaxias Tables 2 to 3; Figs. 3 to 4, 9, 10 a, 11 and 12 Galaxias pusillus (non Mack, 1936)��� Andrews 1976: 324 (partim). Brachygalaxias pusillus (non Mack, 1936)��� Scott 1942: 55 (partim); Whitley 1956 b: 39 (partim); 1957: 6; 1960: 29; Scott 1966: 246 (partim); Frankenberg 1967: 227 (partim); Lake 1971: 20 (partim); Scott 1971: 3 (partim); Chessman & Williams 1974: 168; Pollard 1980: 348 (partim). Brachygalaxias pusillus pusillus (non Mack, 1936)��� Munro 1957: 18 (partim); Frankenberg 1969: 185 (partim); 1971: 94 (partim). Galaxiella pusilla (non Mack, 1936)��� Backhouse & Vanner 1978: 129 (partim); Lake 1978: 26 (partim); McDowall 1978 a: 116 (partim); McDowall 1980: 55 (partim); McDowall & Frankenberg 1981: 552 (partim); Backhouse 1983: 6 (partim); Cadwallader & Backhouse 1983: 75 (partim); Humphries 1983: 4 (partim); Jackson & Davies 1983: 39; Last et al. 1983: 201 (partim); Merrick & Schmida 1984: 98 (partim); Beck 1985: 12; Allen 1989: 44 (partim); Berra & Allen 1989: 293 (partim); Paxton et al. 1989: 179 (partim); Fulton 1990: 39 (partim); Koehn & Morison 1990: 20 (partim); Andrews 1991: 59 (partim); Koehn & Raadik 1991: 77 (partim); Pen et al. 1993: 848 (partim); Humphries 1995: 1159 (partim); Unmack & Paras 1995: 398 (partim); Westbury 1995: 1 (partim); Chilcott & Humphries 1996: 147 (partim); McDowall & Fulton 1996: 70 (partim); Raadik 1996: 13; Koster 1997: 9 (partim); McDowall 2000: 1123 (partim); Raadik 2000: 5; Littlejohn 2001: 803; Raadik et al. 2001 a: 9 (partim); Raadik et al. 2001 b: 110 (partim); Unmack 2001: 1060 (partim); Allen et al. 2002: 111 (partim); Fields 2002; 3 (partim); Hammer 2002: 6; Koster 2003: 268 (partim); Hammer & Horne 2004: 2; Hammer & Walker 2004: 85; Romanowski 2004: 80 (partim); Kuiter 2005: 162, Fig. p 163 (partim); Paxton et al. 2006: 408 (partim); McDowall 2006: 356 (partim); Threatened Species Section 2006: 44 (partim); Crook et al. 2008: 10; Hammer 2009: ii; Hammer et al. 2009: 3; Galeotti et al. 2010: 13 (partim); Saddlier et al. 2010: 3 (partim); Hammer et al. 2012: 63; Crook & Gillanders 2013: 207 (partim); Hammer et al. 2013: 70 (partim); King et al. 2013: 165 (partim); Kuiter 2013: 84 (partim), 8 lower images p. 86; Lintermans 2013 c: 286 (partim); Bachmann et al. 2014: 1; Raadik 2014: 160 (partim). Galaxiella pusilla ���west region������ Coleman et al. 2010: 1911; Unmack et al. 2012: 1; Coleman et al. 2013: 1821. Galaxiella pusilla II���Unmack 2013: 43. Galaxiella sp.��� Lieschke et al. 2013 a: 15; Lieschke et al. 2013 b: 297., Published as part of Coleman, Rhys A., Hoffmann, Ary A. & Raadik, Tarmo A., 2015, A review of Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Teleostei: Galaxiidae) in south-eastern Australia with a description of a new species, pp. 243-281 in Zootaxa 4021 (2) on page 261, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4021.2.2, http://zenodo.org/record/236167, {"references":["Mack, G. (1936) Victorian species of the genus Galaxias, with descriptions of two new species. Memoirs of the National Museum Victoria, 9, 98 - 101.","Andrews, A. P. (1976) A revision of the family Galaxiidae (Pisces) in Tasmania. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 27, 297 - 349. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1071 / MF 9760297","Scott, E. O. G. (1942) Description of Tasmanian mud trout, Galaxias (Galaxias) upcheri sp. nov.: with a note on the genus Bachygalaxias Eigenmann, 1924, and its occurrence in Australia. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum, 1, 51 - 57.","Whitley, G. P. (1956 b) List of the native freshwater fishes of Australia. Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society of NSW, 1954 - 55, 39 - 47.","Scott, E. O. G. (1966) The genera of the Galaxiidae. Australian Zoologist, 13, 244 - 258.","Frankenberg, R. S. (1967) The vertebrate fauna of the Bass Strait Islands: 3. The galaxiid fishes of Flinders and King Islands. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, 80, 225 - 228.","Lake, J. S. (1971) Freshwater Fishes and Rivers of Australia. Nelson, Melbourne, 61 pp.","Scott, E. O. G. (1971) On the occurrence in Tasmania and on Flinders Island of Brachygalaxias Eigenmann, 1928 (Pisces: Galaxiidae) with descriptions of two new subspecies. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum, 37, 1 - 14.","Chessman, B. C. & Williams, W. D. (1974) Distribution of fish in inland saline waters in Victoria, Australia. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 25, 167 - 172. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1071 / MF 9740167","Pollard, J. (Ed.) (1980) G. P. Whitley's Handbook of Australian Fishes. Jack Pollard Publishing, North Sydney, 629 pp.","Munro, I. S. R. (1957) Handbook of Australian fishes. No. 7. Australian. Fisheries Newsletter, 16, 15 - 18.","Frankenberg, R. S. (1969) Studies on the evolution of galaxiid fishes with particular reference to the Australian fauna. PhD Thesis, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 205 pp.","Backhouse, G. N. & Vanner, R. W. (1978) Observations on the biology of the dwarf galaxiid, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Victorian Naturalist, 95, 128 - 132.","Lake, J. S. (1978) Australian Freshwater Fishes. Nelson, Melbourne, 160 pp.","McDowall, R. M. (1978 a) A new genus and species of galaxiid fish from Australia (Salmoniformes: Galaxiidae). Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 8, 115 - 124. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1080 / 03036758.1978.10419420","McDowall, R. M. (1980) 10 Family Galaxiidae Galaxiids. In: McDowall, R. M. (Ed.), Freshwater Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Reed Books, Sydney, pp. 55 - 69.","McDowall, R. M. & Frankenberg, R. S. (1981) The galaxiid fishes of Australia. Records of the Australian Museum, 33, 443 - 605. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.3853 / j. 0067 - 1975.33.1981.195","Cadwallader, P. L. & Backhouse, G. N. (1983) A Guide to the Freshwater Fish of Victoria. Victorian Government Printing Office, Melbourne, 249 pp.","Humphries, P. (1983) Aspects of the biology of the dwarf galaxiid, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Salmoniformes: Galaxiidae). BSc (Hons) Thesis, Monash University, Clayton, 94 pp.","Jackson, P. D. & Davies, J. N. (1983) Survey of fish fauna in the Grampians region, south-western Victoria. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, 95, 39 - 51.","Last, P. R., Scott, E. O. G. & Talbot, F. H. (1983) Fishes of Tasmania. Tasmanian Fisheries Development Authority, Hobart, 563 pp.","Merrick, J. R. & Schmida, G. E. (1984) Australian Freshwater Fishes: Biology and Management. J. R. Merrick, North Ryde, N. S. W., 409 pp.","Beck, R. G. (1985) Field observations upon the Dwarf Galaxiid Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae) in the south-east of South Australia, Australia. South Australian Naturalist, 60, 12 - 22.","Berra, T. M. & Allen, G. R. (1989) Clarification of the differences between Galaxiella nigrostriata (Shipway, 1953) and Galaxiella munda McDowall, 1978 (Pisces: Galaxiidae) from Western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum, 14, 293 - 297.","Paxton, J. R., Hoese, D. F., Allen, G. R. & Hanley, J. E. (1989) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Volume 7. Pisces. Petromyzontidae to Carangidae. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 665 pp.","Fulton, W. (1990) Tasmanian Freshwater Fishes. Fauna of Tasmania handbook no. 7. University of Tasmania, Hobart, 80 pp.","Koehn, J. D. & Morison, A. K. (1990) A review of the conservation status of native freshwater fish in Victoria. Victorian Naturalist, 107, 5 - 12.","Andrews, A. P. (1991) Observations on the Tasmanian mudfish, Galaxias cleaveri (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania, 125, 55 - 59.","Koehn, J. D. & Raadik, T. A. (1991) The Tasmanian mudfish, Galaxias cleaveri Scott, 1934, in Victoria. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria, 103 (2), 77 - 86.","Pen, L. J., Gill, H. S., Humphries, P. & Potter, I. C. (1993) Biology of the black-stripe minnow Galaxiella nigrostriata, including comparisons with the other two Galaxiella species. Journal of Fish Biology, 43, 847 - 863. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / j. 1095 - 8649.1993. tb 01160. x","Humphries, P. (1995) Life history, food and habitat of southern pygmy perch, Nannoperca australis, in the Macquarie River, Tasmania. Marine and Freshwater Research, 46, 1159 - 1169. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1071 / MF 9951159","Unmack, P. J. & Paras, G. J. (1995) Galaxiella pusilla: around Melbourne, going, going, nearly gone. Fishes of Sahul, 9, 398 - 400.","Westbury, T. (1995) Conservation ecology of the dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Galaxiidae), with implications for management. BSc (Hons) Thesis, La Trobe University, Bundoora, 84 pp.","Chilcott, S. J. & Humphries, P. (1996) Freshwater fish of northeast Tasmania with notes on the dwarf galaxias. Records of the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, 103, 145 - 149.","McDowall, R. M. & Fulton, W. (1996) Family Galaxiidae. In: McDowall, R. M. (Ed.), Freshwater Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Reed books, Sydney, pp. 52 - 77.","Raadik, T. A. (1996) Aquatic fauna survey (fish and decapod crustaceans) of the Hamilton water supply system, Grampians National Park. Report to the Glenelg Region Water Authority. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Victoria. 39 pp.","Koster, W. (1997) A study of the interactions between dwarf galaxias (Galaxiella pusilla), southern pygmy perch (Nannoperca australis) and eastern gambusia (Gambusia holbrooki). BSc (Hons) Thesis, Deakin University, Clayton, 88 pp.","McDowall, R. M. (2000) Biogeography of the southern cool-temperate galaxoid fishes: evidence from metazoan macroparasite faunas. Journal of Biogeography, 27, 1221 - 1229. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1046 / j. 1365 - 2699.2000.00490. x","Raadik, T. A. (2000) Brief environmental assessment of the Barwon Water Supply Headworks (upper Barwon River). Report to Water Resource Management Branch, Department of Natural Resources and Environment. Freshwater Ecology, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Victoria, 32 pp.","Littlejohn, P. (2001) The Little Aussie battler. Fishes of Sahul, 15, 803.","Raadik, T. A., O'Connor, J. P. & Mahoney, J. C. (2001 a) Fish and decapod crustacean survey, Regional Forest Agreement Process, Victoria - 1997 to 1999 (North-east, Central Highlands, Gippsland and West RFA Regions). Summary Report. Report to Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Victoria, 53 pp.","Raadik, T. A., O'Connor, J. P. & Mahoney, J. C. (2001 b) Fish and decapod crustacean survey, Regional Forest Agreement Process, Victoria - 1997 to 1999 (North-east, Central Highlands, Gippsland and West RFA Regions). Appendices. Report to Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Victoria. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Victoria, 129 pp.","Allen, G. R., Midgley, S. H. & Allen, M. (2002) Field Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Australia. Western Australian Museum, Perth, 394 pp.","Fields, L. (2002) Bringing the Eastern Little Galaxia back to Melbourne. ANGFA Victoria VICNEWS May, 3 - 4.","Hammer, M. P. (2002) The south east fish inventory: distribution and conservation of freshwater fishes of south east South Australia. Native Fish Australia (SA) Inc, Adelaide, 53 pp.","Koster, W. (2003) Threatened species of the world: Galaxiella pusilla (Mack 1936) (Galaxiidae). Environmental Biology of Fishes, 68, 268. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1023 / A: 1027339104903","Hammer, M., & Horne, P. (2004) Threatened ecological communities of South Australia's south-east. Fishes of Sahul, 18 (1), 2 - 7.","Hammer, M. P. & Walker, K. F. (2004) A catalogue of South Australian freshwater fishes, including new records, range extensions and translocations. Transactions Royal Society of South Australia, 128, 85 - 97.","Romanowski, N. (2004) Notes on dwarf galaxias Galaxiella pusilla. Fishes of Sahul, 18, 80 - 86.","Kuiter, R. H. (2005) More on dwarf galaxias. Fishes of Sahul, 19, 160 - 163.","Paxton, J. R., Gates, J. E., Bray, D. J. & Hoese, D. F. (2006) Galaxiinae. In Hoese, D. F., Bray, D. J., Paxton, J. R., Allen, G. R. Fishes. In: Beesley, P. L. & Wells, A. (Eds.), Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Vol. 35. Part 1. ABRS and CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 402 - 411.","McDowall, R. M. (2006) Crying wolf, crying foul, or crying shame: alien salmonids and a biodiversity crisis in the southern cool-temperate galaxioid fishes? Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 16, 233 - 422. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1007 / s 11160 - 006 - 9017 - 7","Threatened Species Section (2006) Recovery Plan: Tasmanian Galaxiidae 2006 - 2010. Department of Primary Industries, Water, Hobart, 85 pp.","Crook, D., Macdonald, J., Belcher, C., O'Mahony, D., Dawson, D., Lovett, A., Walker, A. & Bannam, L. (2008) Lake Condah Restoration Project - Biodiversity assessment. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report Series No. 180. Department of Sustainability and Environment, Heidelberg, 38 pp.","Galeotti, D. M., McCullough, C. D. & Lund, M. A. (2010) Black-stripe minnow Galaxiella nigrostriata (Shipway 1953) (Pisces: Galaxiidae), a review and discussion. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia, 93, 13 - 20.","Saddlier, S., Jackson, J. & Hammer, M. (2010) National recovery plan for the dwarf galaxias Galaxiella pusilla. Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne, 21 pp.","Crook, D. A. & Gillanders, B. M. (2013) Chapter 8. Age and growth. In: Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes, CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 195 - 221.","Hammer, M. P., Adams, A. & Hughes, J. M. (2013) Chapter 3. Evolutionary processes and biodiversity. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 49 - 79.","King, A. J., Humphries, P. & McCasker, N. G. (2013) Chapter 7. Reproduction and early life history. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 159 - 193.","Kuiter, R. H. (2013) Pictorial Guide to Victoria's Freshwater Fishes. Aquatic Photographics, Seaford, 178 pp.","Lintermans, M. (2013) Chapter 12. Conservation and management. In: Ecology of Australian Freshwater Fishes. Humphries, P. & Walker, K. (Eds.), CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp. 283 - 316.","Bachmann, M., Whiterod, N., Anderson, D. & Farrington, L. (2014) Regional status update of the dwarf galaxis (Galaxiella pusilla) in the south east of South Australia - spring 2012 - 1 3. Aquasave-Nature Glenelg Trust, Mt Gambier. Available from: http: // natureglenelg. org. au / wp-content / uploads / 2014 / 06 / Aquasave-NGT-Dwarf-Galaxias-in-the-South-East-For- Website. pdf (accessed 17 January 2015)","Coleman, R. A., Pettigrove, V., Raadik, T. A., Hoffmann, A. A., Miller, A. D. & Carew, M. E. (2010) Microsatellite markers and mtDNA indicate two distinct groups in dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae), a threatened freshwater fish from south-eastern Australia. Conservation Genetics, 11, 1911 - 1928. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1007 / s 10592 - 010 - 0082 - z","Unmack, P. J., Bagley, J. C., Adams, M., Hammer, M. P. & Johnson, J. B. (2012) Molecular phylogeny and phylogeography of the Australian freshwater fish genus Galaxiella, with an emphasis on dwarf galaxias (G. pusilla). PLoS ONE, 7, e 38433. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1371 / journal. pone. 0038433","Coleman, R. A., Weeks, A. R. & Hoffmann, A. A. (2013) Balancing genetic uniqueness and genetic variation in determining conservation and translocation strategies: a comprehensive case study of threatened dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack) (Pisces: Galaxiidae). Molecular Ecology, 22, 1820 - 1835. http: // dx. doi. org / 10.1111 / mec. 12227","Lieschke, J. A., Dodd, L., Stoessel, D., Raadik, T. A., Steelcable, A., Kitchingman, A. and Ramsey, D. (2013 a) The status of fish populations in Victorian rivers 2004 - 2011 - Part A. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report Series No. 246. Department of Environment and Primary Industries, Heidelberg, Victoria, 147 pp.","Lieschke, J. A., Dodd, L., Stoessel, D., Raadik, T. A., Steelcable, A., Kitchingman, A. & Ramsey, D. (2013 b) The status of fish populations in Victorian rivers 2004 - 2011 - Part B: Individual basin assessments. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report Series No. 247. Department of Environment and Primary Industries, Heidelberg, Victoria, 353 pp."]}

Analysis of diverse morphological characters supports combined monophyly of the diminutive galaxiid genera Brachygalaxias (Chile) and Galaxiella (Australia), both of which are monophyletic. However, equally parsimonious trees vary in the suggested relationships among the three species of Galaxiella, and in no instance is there strong support for any particular association among them. The African Galaxias zebratus may also form a monophyletic clade when added to [Brachygalaxias + Galaxiella], though character analyses that include a wider representation among galaxiids are needed to clarify that question. Brachygalaxias and Galaxiella are distinctive among all galaxiids in having longitudinal coloration, including bright yellow to orange stripes. Brachygalaxias gothei is not sexually dimorphic (orange stripes are present in both sexes), whereas among Galaxiella species, the eastern Australian G. pusilla is dimorphic (only the smaller male has bright red stripes). The western Australian G. nigrostr...

Similarities in the diets of larval, juvenile and adult black-stripe minnow (Galaxiella nigrostriata) and salamanderfish (Lepidogalaxias salamandroides), collected from ephemeral pools in south-western Australia during the mid-wet, late-wet and dry seasons, were assessed. During the mid-wet season, both intra- and interspecific competition for a diminishing food supply was minimised through differences in prey utilisation by the various developmental stages of both species. During the late-wet season, the pools contained only juvenile G. nigrostriata and juvenile and adult L. salamandroides, the diets of which were vastly different. A shift towards terrestrial fauna by G. nigrostriata and the ingestion of greater proportions of larger benthic prey taxa by L. salamandroides minimised interspecific competition for food at a time when densities of zooplanktors were rapidly declining. Timing differences in the onset of aestivation ensures that no interspecific competition for food occurs during the dry season.

The freshwater fauna of Southern Australia is primarily restricted to the southwestern and southeastern corners of the continent, and is separated by a large, arid region that is inhospitable to this biota. This geographic phenomenon has attracted considerable interest from biogeographers looking to explain evolutionary diversification in this region. Here, we employed phylogenetic and phylogeographic approaches to evaluate the effect of this barrier on a group of four galaxiid fish species (Galaxiella) endemic to temperate Southern Australia. We also tested if continental shelf width has influenced connectivity among populations during low sea levels when rivers, now isolated, could have been connected. We addressed these questions by sampling each species across its range using multiple molecular markers (mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences, nuclear S7 intron sequences, and 49 allozyme loci). These data also allowed us to assess species boundaries, to refine phylogenetic affinities, and to estimate species ages. Interestingly, we found compelling evidence for cryptic species in G. pusilla, manifesting as allopatric eastern and western taxa. Our combined phylogeny and dating analysis point to an origin for the genus dating to the early Cenozoic, with three of the four species originating during the Oligocene-Miocene. Each Galaxiella species showed high levels of genetic divergences between all but the most proximate populations. Despite extensive drainage connections during recent low sea levels in southeastern Australia, populations of both species within G. pusilla maintained high levels of genetic structure. All populations experienced Late Pleistocene-Holocene population growth, possibly in response to the relaxation of arid conditions after the last glacial maximum. High levels of genetic divergence and the discovery of new cryptic species have important implications for the conservation of this already threatened group of freshwater species.

The growth, age composition, reproductive biology and diet of Galaxiella nigrostriata in seasonal water bodies in south-western Australia are described and compared with G. munda and G. pusilla. Like the other two Galaxiella species, G. nigrostriata has a 1 year life cycle. The mean length attained by female G. nigrostriata at sexual maturity is approximately 37 mm, compared with about 47 and 28 mm for G. munda and G. pusilla, respectively. Like G. munda, G. nigrostriata is a multiple spawner. Although all three Galaxiella species breed mainly in winter and early spring, spawning occurs earlier in G. nigrostriata than in the other two species. An early production of offspring enables the young females and males of this species to reach approximately 78 and 88%, respectively, of their ultimate body length by early summer. Such a prolonged period of early and relatively rapid growth is advantageous to G. nigrostriata, since this species lives in water bodies that often dry up during the summer and early autumn and thus cannot grow during this period. The gonads start to undergo rapid development in autumn, when the pools begin to fill with water following the onset of the seasonal rains. All three Galaxielta species are carnivores. Galaxiella nigrostriata mainly takes prey from the water column and the water surface, G. pusilla focuses on prey in the water column and benthos, and G. munda feeds widely on prey on the water surface, throughout the water column and from the benthos. The prevalence of small prey, such as cladocera and calanoid copepods, is greater in the diets of G. nigrostriata and G. pusilla than in that of G. munda.

The reproductive biology, growth and diet of Galaxiella munda McDowall in a south-western Australian river are described. Monthly trends in gonadosomatic indices, stages in ovarian development and the size and maturity of oocytes show that spawning extended from July to October and peaked in late August to early September. Histology of ovaries indicated that G. munda produced clutches of eggs which it released at intervals. Data on length-frequencies, otoliths and gonads demonstrate that G. munda typically died in the few months after spawning. By age I, the females and males of G. munda had reached 47 mm (≡ 0.54 g) and 43 mm (≡ 0.42 g), respectively. The respective von Bertalanffy growth curve parameters for L., K and to were 48.6 mm, 3.702 and -0.0014 for females and 44.3 mm, 4.217 and -0.0012 for males. Galaxiella munda fed predominantly on terrestrial fauna on the water surface, cladocerans and copepods in the water column, and dipteran larvae in the benthos. Comparisons are made between the above aspects of the biology of G. munda and those recorded for three other locally endemic species (Galaxias occidentalis Ogilby, Bostockia porosa Castelnau and Edelia vittata Castelnau) and wherever possible with other Galaxiella species. Such comparisons have emphasized the relationship between size and age at first maturity and spawning mode.

The dwarf galaxias (Galaxiella pusilla) and little galaxias (Galaxiella toourtkoourt) are both threatened freshwater fish from south-eastern Australia. Occasionally populations have been found with enlarged heads associated with the accumulation of ‘white balls’, but the cause of these deformities has not previously been investigated. In this study, histopathology and molecular techniques were employed to identify cysts extracted from the heads of Galaxiella species across six populations. Histopathology and DNA sequences from both mitochondrial (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I) and nuclear (ribosomal internal transcribed spacer 1) regions identified the cysts as metacercariae of Apatemon gracilis (Rudolphi, 1819), a cosmopolitan digenean trematode species. Heavy infestations of trematode metacercariae within Galaxiella populations are of concern due to the potential to cause increased mortality associated with altered behaviour of the fish host that increases the likelihood of predation. Direct mortality from infestations is also possible, but not quantified in this study.

The dwarf galaxias, Galaxiella pusilla (Mack), is a small, threatened freshwater fish from coastal south-eastern Australia. Recent genetic studies, using multiple nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers, found substantial differences between populations in western Victoria and south Australia ('west region') compared to eastern Victoria, Flinders Island, and Tasmania ('east region') that suggest the presence of a cryptic species. Morphological measurements and meristic counts from multiple populations within each region were undertaken to investigate potential differences between regions. Several characters, found to discriminate between individuals in the regions and to be diagnostic for two taxa, were used to describe a new species, Galaxiella toourtkoourt, for the west region. This is only the second species in the Galaxiidae to exhibit sexual dimorphism. The original description of Galaxiella pusilla, based on five specimens, is revised following examination of a large number of individuals. Both species are considered nationally threatened and are categorised as 'endangered'; the revised distribution of G. pusilla s.s. is reduced by approximately 60%. A number of inconsistencies in the most recent revision of the genus Galaxiella are also corrected.

Galaxiella nigrostriata is a freshwater fish that is endemic to the seasonally dry coastal wetlands of south-west Western Australia and considered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as lower risk–near threatened. This small fish (maximum total length

The physicochemistry, hydrology and invertebrate fauna are described for an unusual wetland, EPP 173, in Melaleuca Park, near Perth, Western Australia. EPP 173 is important as the site for a northern outlier population of the Black-stripe minnow, Galaxiella nigrostriata (Shipway), a fish endemic to southwestern Australia. EPP 173 is an acid (pH 1200). The colour of the water together with the surrounding forest and wetland vegetation facilitate the establishment and persistence of strong thermal stratification of the wetland in spring and summer. The invertebrate fauna comprises 41 species with a substantial benthic cladoceran component, including at least one species previously known only from southern wetlands between Augusta and Albany. The wetland is of high conservation value, containing no exotic species and low concentrations of nutrients ­ accompanied by the absence of algal blooms. However, encroaching urban development is likely to alter the limnology of EPP 173, threatening the survival of the resident G. nigrostriata population. Extra keywords: thermal stratification, disjunct distributions, aestivating fish, refugia, aquatic invertebrates.

We measured the metabolic rate of three fishes (Lepidogalaxias salamandroides, Galaxiella nigrostriata, Bostockia porosa) that are endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. The first two species have been reported to aestivate, the third does not aestivate when the ponds dry up in late summer. For normoxic conditions, the metabolic rates of B. porosa and G. nigrostriata in water (0.48 mL g–1 h–1 and 0.44 mL g–1 h–1 respectively), are significantly higher than in air (0.21 mL g–1 h–1 and 0.08 mL g–1 h–1 respectively) but for the more benthic and terrestrially mobile L. salamandroides there was no significant difference between VO2 in water (0.29 mL g–1 h–1 ) and air (0.18 mL g–1 h–1). Progressive hypoxia (12, 5 and 2% O2) decreased the metabolic rate of G. nigrostriata and B. porosa in both water and air but there was a reduction in metabolic rate for L. salamandroides only in water. The metabolic physiology of L. salamandroides in water and air is consistent with the capacity to aestivate in moist soil, but the different metabolic response of G. nigrostriata suggests that it adopts a different strategy to L. salamandroides to survive when the ponds dry up in summer. The metabolism of G. nigrostriata in air and water declines with progressive hypoxia (from 12 to 5 to 2% O2). B. porosa does not appear to be able to cope metabolically when out of water or under hypoxic conditions, and therefore would not be able to aestivate.

The larval development of Galaxias occidentalis, Galaxiella munda and Galaxiella nigrostriata is described and illustrated with material collected from freshwater habitats in south-westem Australia. Galaxias occidentalis larvae are very elongate (52-54 myomeres), lightly pigmented and morphologically very similar to those of Galaxias vulgaris and Galaxias maculatus. Notochord flexion (9.3-13.1 mm), formation of all except the pelvic fins (6.1-21.9 mm) and transition (>26.6 mm) in larval G. occidentalis occur at similar sizes to larvae of the strictly freshwater G. vulgaris but at smaller sizes than in larvae of diadromous populations of G. maculatus. Larvae of Galaxiella munda and G. nigrostriata are elongate (3843 myomeres) and heavily pigmented and can be separated primarily by the considerably heavier pigmentation in the latter species. Notochord flexion (6.6-13.1 mm), formation of all except the pelvic fins (5.8-13.6 mm) and transition (>13.2 mm) in both species occur at smaller sizes than in Galaxias larvae. Galaxias larvae can be distinguished from those of many superficially similar clupeiform species by the combination of a dorsal fin directly above the anal fin, lack of a strongly striated hindgut, absence of a conspicuous gas bladder above the fore- and hindgut junction, and myomeres without cross-hatched muscle fibres. Galaxiella larvae are very different from Galaxias larvae and are unlikely to be confused with the larvae of any other sympatric species.

The two Australian galaxiid species formerly placed in the genus Brachygalaxias Eigenmann, and sometimes included in Galaxias Cuvier, are placed in the new genus Galaxiella. G. munda sp.nov. is described from Western Australia, where it occurs in western and southwestern drainages.