Acanthurus gahhm

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Acanthurus gahhm
Black surgeonfish, Acanthurus gahhm at Abu Dabab Reefs, Red Sea, Egypt.jpeg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Acanthuriformes
Family: Acanthuridae
Genus: Acanthurus
Species:
A. gahhm
Binomial name
Acanthurus gahhm
(Gmelin, 1789) [2]
Synonyms [3]
  • Chaetodon nigrofuscus gahhm Gmelin, 1789

Acanthurus gahhm, the black surgeonfish, monk surgeonfish or lined surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes or tangs. This fish is found in the Western Indian Ocean.

Contents

Taxonomy

Acanthurus gahhm was first formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin with its type locality not being given but is thought to be the Red Sea. [4] The genus Acanthurus is one of two genera in the tribe Acanthurini which is one of three tribes in the subfamily Acanthurinae which is one of two subfamilies in the family Acanthuridae. [5]

Etymology

Acanthurus gahhm has a specific name, gahhm, which is an Arabic word for surgeonfish in the Red Sea. [6] It was thought to have been used by Peter Forsskål in 1755 but was described as an Arabic common name and not used as a valid specific name until Gmelin used it in 1789. [2]

Description

This fish reaches up to 50 centimeters in length. It is oval in shape and laterally compressed. Like other surgeonfishes, it swims with its pectoral fins. The caudal fin has a crescent shape. The mouth is small and pointed. The body is black to dark brown, with a white ring around the base of the tail and a yellow stripe around the eyes. The pectoral fins are tipped with yellow. [7]

Distribution

Acanthurus gahmm is found in the north western Indian Ocean where it is endemic to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, records farther east are likely to be misidentifications of A. nigricauda . [1]

Biology

This is a demersal fish. It lives on reefs and in lagoons and other sandy areas up to 40 meters deep. [3]

This species is omnivorous, feeding on algae, zooplankton and other small invertebrates, and detritus. It is active during the day and may swim in groups or remain solitary. [8]

Uses

This species is kept in aquaria and harvested for food. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acanthuridae</span> Family of fishes with caudal spines

Acanthuridae are the family of surgeonfishes, tangs, and unicornfishes. The family includes about 86 extant species of marine fish living in tropical seas, usually around coral reefs. Many of the species are brightly colored and popular in aquaria.

<i>Acanthurus</i> Genus of fishes

Acanthurus is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, which includes the surgeionfishes, unicornfishes and tangs, found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Ocean. They are found in tropical oceans, especially near coral reefs, with most species in the Indo-Pacific but a few are found in the Atlantic Ocean. As other members of the family, they have a pair of spines, one on either side of the base of the tail which are dangerously sharp.

<i>Naso</i> (fish) Genus of fishes

Naso is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family, Acanthuridae, the unicornfishes, surgeonfishes and tangs. The fishes in this genus are known commonly as unicornfishes because of the "rostral protuberance", a hornlike extension of the forehead present in some species. Unicorn fish are popular with spearfishermen and may be cooked by grilling them whole. Unicornfish primarily live around coral reefs and eat mostly algae. It is very popular in Maldives.

<i>Acanthurus achilles</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus achilles, the Achilles tang, redtail surgeonfish or redspot surgeonfish, is a marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This fish is found in the Pacific Ocean.

<i>Acanthurus leucosternon</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus leucosternon is a marine tropical fish belonging to the surgeonfish family, Acanthuridae. Its common names are powder blue tang and powder-blue surgeonfish.

<i>Acanthurus bahianus</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus bahianus, the ocean surgeon or ocean surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This species is found on reefs in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Brazil. It is sometimes marketed as a food item, but it is more often used as bait, or in tropical saltwater aquaria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doctorfish tang</span> Species of fish

The doctorfish tang, also known as the doctorfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. These fishes are found in the western Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elongate surgeonfish</span> Species of fish

Acanthurus mata is a marine tropical fish belonging to the family of the Acanthuridae or surgeonfishes. Its common names are elongate surgeonfish and blue-lined surgeonfish.

<i>Naso lituratus</i> Species of fish

Naso lituratus, the clown unicornfish, orangespined unicornfish, black-finned unicornfish, Pacific orangespined unicornfish, blackfinned unicornfish or stripefaced unicornfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This fish is found in the eastern Indian Ocean and western Pacific Ocean.

<i>Acanthurus albipectoralis</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus albipectoralis, the whitefin surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This species is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.

<i>Acanthurus blochii</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus blochii, the ringtail surgeonfish or dark surgeonfish, is a marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This fish is found in the Indo-Pacific.

<i>Acanthurus auranticavus</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus auranticavus, the ringtail surgeonfish or orange-socket surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This species is found in the Indo-West Pacific.

<i>Acanthurus bariene</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus bariene, the bariene surgeonfish, black-spot surgeonfish, or eye-spot surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This species is found in the Indo-Pacific.

<i>Acanthurus fowleri</i> Species of fish

Acanthurus fowleri, Fowler's surgeonfish or the horseshoe surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes or tangs. This fish is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.

<i>Naso caesius</i> Species of fish

Naso caesius, the grey unicornfish or silverblotched unicornfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This species occurs in the Indo-Pacific region.

<i>Naso elegans</i> Species of fish

Naso elegans, the elegant unicornfish, the blonde naso tang, Indian orange-spine unicorn, lipstick surgeonfish, lipstick tang, orangespine unicornfish or smoothheaded unicornfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This species is found in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans.

<i>Prionurus chrysurus</i> Species of fish

Prionurus chrysurus, the Indonesian sawtail or yellowtail sawtail, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This fish is found in the western Pacific Ocean in Indonesia.

<i>Prionurus microlepidotus</i> Species of fish

Prionurus microlepidotus, the sixplate sawtail, Australian sawtail or sawtail surgeonfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. This fish is found in the southwest Pacific Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acanthurinae</span> Subfamily of fishes

Acanthurinae is a subfamily of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Acanthuridae, found in the Indo-Pacific and the tropical Atlantic. These fishes commonly have the English names surgeonfishes or tangs.

The whitechin surgeonfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. It is endemic to the waters of the western Pacific Ocean in the Philippines.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Abesamis, R.; Choat, J.H.; Clements, K.D.; et al. (2012). "Acanthurus gahhm". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2012: e.T154818A17627321. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012.RLTS.T154818A17627321.en . Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  2. 1 2 Fricke, Ronald (2008). "Authorship, availability and validity of fish names described by Peter (Pehr) Simon Forsskål and Johann Christian Fabricius in the 'Descriptiones animalium' by Carsten Niebuhr in 1775 (Pisces)". Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde A Neue Serie. 1: 1–76.
  3. 1 2 Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2023). "Acanthurus gahhm" in FishBase. June 2023 version.
  4. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Acanthurus". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  5. J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. pp. 497–502. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6.
  6. Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (12 January 2021). "Order ACANTHURIFORMES (part 2): Families EPHIPPIDAE, LEIOGNATHIDAE, SCATOPHAGIDAE, ANTIGONIIDAE, SIGANIDAE, CAPROIDAE, LUVARIDAE, ZANCLIDAE and ACANTHURIDAE". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  7. Gerald R. Allen; Roger Steene; Paul Humann; Ned DeLoach (2003). Reef Fish Identification: Tropical Pacific. New World Publications, Inc. ISBN   1878348361.
  8. Vilcinskas, A. La vie sous-marine des tropiques. Vigot, 2002. ISBN   2711415252