is 30 cm. The swimbladder has two anterior extensions that arise medially, diverge and terminate. Two lateral extensions appear anteriorally, each with a blind tubule which curves to the abdominal walls and becomes a complex network of blind tubules. There are two posterior tapering extensions that project into and terminate into the caudal region. A duct like process is present from the lateral surface to the urogenital opening. This configuration is very similar to S. sihama, except that the lateral tubules are more complex than in S. sihama. The small-scale whiting is a pale brown to dull brown colour above and lighter below with a faint mid-lateral band normally present. The fins are all hyaline in appearance except for the dorsal fin which becomes dusky terminally with 5 or 6 rows of dusky spots on the soft dorsal fin membrane. Distribution and habitat The small-scale whiting occupies a fairly restricted range in the northwest Pacific Ocean consisting of southern Japan, Taiwan, Korea and India. In Japan the species is known from the southern half of the island chain below Tokyo in the west and Yokohama in the east. The species is rare in both Korea and India, with only a single reported capture of the species in these countries. The species inhabits waters from 0 to 30 m in depth, often found on well developed tidal flats in the estuaries of large rivers. The larvae and juveniles of the species commonly inhabit these environments also, with juveniles often inhabiting the shallowest parts of the tidal flats. Biology Like other sillaginids, S. parvisquamis is a benthic predator and is known to consume a variety of crustaceans, molluscs and annelid worms. Studies in the Buzen Sea of Japan have found the small-scale whiting spawns from May to July, while laboratory studies have similarly found that spawning occurs from May to September with a peak from June to July. Laboratory conditions also showed that spawning occurs at night predominantly between 20:30 and 22:00 hours. The eggs are buoyant and spherical in shape with an average diameter of 0.71 mm and are transparent and colourless. Larval and juvenile development has been extensively described by Imoto and Matsui (2000), with a number of characteristics including higher numbers of myomeres and melanophores on the dorsal surface of the body as well as a lack of a vertical band of melanophores on the caudal peduncle distinguishing the