Podothecus hamlini: redescription, distribution and differences from P. veternus (Perciformes: Cottoidei: Agonidae)

The poacher Podothecus hamlini Jordan and Gilbert in Jordan and Evermann 1898 is redescribed on the basis of 35 specimens collected in northern Japan and southern Okhotsk Seas. This species can be distinguished from Podothecus veternus Jordan and Starks 1895 by the following combination of characters: 2–2.5 rows of dorsolateral plates between the depressed tip of first dorsal fin and the origin of second dorsal fin (almost no space in the latter); plates on caudal peduncle with conspicuous spines (no spine); no black bands on the body behind the head (present); and a black spot present between the 1st and 3rd spines of first dorsal fin (absent). It is suggested that there is no P. veternus in the Japan Sea and that all previous reports of this species are erroneous and refer to P. hamlini.