Neotrygon romeoi n. sp. (Dasyatidae), a new species of blue-spotted maskray from Fiji, previously confused with Neotrygon kuhlii (Müller and Henle 1841) or Neotrygon trigonoides (Castelnau 1873), is described based on nine specimens (310–397 mm disc width) from Fiji. Neotrygon romeoi n. sp. is a large maskray with a broadly angled snout, long claspers in adult males and a median row of thornlets extending from the nape to the tail base. Fresh specimens have a brownish dorsal surface with dark mask-like marking covering across and between the eyes (sometimes indistinct), two large brown to black branchial blotches posterior to the spiracles, numerous black pepper-like spots mainly concentrated in masked area and the branchial blotches, and sometimes having small, dark-edged pale blue to whitish spots. The new species is further characterized by ocellated spots in the medial belt usually absent. Molecular analysis based on 570 bp of partial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) mitochondrial gene also supports that N. romeoi n. sp. is a distinct species from other congeners. The new species, known only from the Fiji Islands, may thus warrant inclusion in Fiji's Endangered and Protected Species Act.
