The Red-banded Clade: lori, flavoguttatus, privitera, aurulentus & cf aurulentus “Coral Sea”
The last clades to discuss are best recognized by lacking the stripe running posteroventrally from the eye, a character otherwise seen in most (all?) other Pseudanthias. Also unique are the purple markings on the yellow iris of the eye. Additionally, these species show some consistency to their patterning which allows us to designate them into two sister lineages. This unusual red striping and barring is not seen anywhere else in the genus, but there are enough similarities with P. ventralis and P. fucinus to suggest with confidence that the two form a single lineage. In the CO1 phylogeny used in this review, these two often (but inconsistently) formed a pair basal to their remaining congeners, indicating this is a highly divergent group of fishes which is likely in need of its own generic distinction.
Compare the similar purple cranial markings of P. parvirostris with P. ventralis. Both groups also lack the cheek stripe common to other Pseudanthias. Credit: Jacky Wong & unknown
The five species comprising the “Red-banded Clade” are easily recognizable by their variably banded or striped patterning. A purple stripe is seen in males which runs dorsally between the eyes; in its sister lineage, there is instead a pair of purple lines in the shape of parentheses. 
Inferring relationships in this clade is made difficult by the uncertainty of biogeographic ranges and possible intraspecific variation in coloration. The species with the largest range and most variable color pattern is P. lori, which ranges from Christmas Island in the Eastern Indian Ocean to Japan and to the Tuamotu Islands of the South Pacific. The color pattern is consistent in being composed of a series of dorsal red half-bars and an elongated band on the caudal peduncle, but the relative length of these bars varies, as does the overall coloration of the body. Much of this is likely related to maturation, as the largest specimens typically have the thinnest and least amount of barring.P. lori is presumed to be basally divergent based on differences in coloration of the dorsal fin, which has a base coloration of purple (though this may vary geographically) with a red (sometimes grading into yellow) submarginal band and contrasting, light-colored spine tips. The remaining species all possess a finely-spotted patterning to the dorsal fin.
Compare the subtle differences of P.
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