Cheimerius | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Spariformes |
Family: | Sparidae |
Genus: | Cheimerius J. L. B. Smith, 1938 |
Species: | C. nufar |
Binomial name | |
Cheimerius nufar (Valenciennes, 1830) | |
Synonyms [2] | |
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Cheimerius is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. The only species in the genus is Cheimerius nufar, the santer seabream, santer or soldier, of the Indian Ocean.
Cheimerius was first proposed as a genus in 1938 by the South African ichthyologist James Leonard Brierley Smith, Smith designated its only species, Dentex nufar, as its type species. [3] Dentex nufar was first formally described in 1830 by the French zoologist Achille Valenciennes with its type locality given as Egypt and Massawa, Eritrea, on the Red Sea. [2] The genus Cheimerius is placed in the family Sparidae within the order Spariformes by the 5th edition of Fishes of the World . [4] Some authorities classify this genus in the subfamily Denticinae, [5] but the 5th edition of Fishes of the World does not recognise subfamilies within the Sparidae. [4]
Cheimerius suffixes cheima, which means "storm", with -ius, an adjectival suffix. IN South Africa this fish appears in estuaries prior to storms at sea, and in calm weather it is absent from these areas. Smith wrote that if this fish is “taken in nets, one may be certain of a storm at sea within twenty-four hours”. The specific name nufar is the name given to this fish by fishers at Massawa. [6]
Cheimerius have an oval shaped body, albeit slightly elongated, which has a standard length which is between 2.2 and 2,5 times its depth. The dorsal fin is supported by 11 or 12 spines, with the first 2 spines being the shortest and the 3rd and 4th spines being the longest, and 10 or 11 soft rays. The anal fin contains 3 spines and 8 soft rays. The first fin ray in the pelvic fin is elongated. The dorsal profile of the head is convex. The front of each jaw bear 4-6 canine-like teeth with bands of bristle-like teeth behind them but there are no molar-like teeth. The body is pinkish above and whitish below with six or seven indistinct, dark, vertical bars along the back on juveniles. These fade and disappear as the fish matures. [7] The santer bream has a maximum published total length of 75 cm (30 in) but 30 cm (12 in) is more typical. [8]
Cheimerius is found in the Western Indian Ocean. It occurs along the coast of eastern Africa from the Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba [1] south to Mossel Bay in the Western Cape, South Africa. It also occurs around Madagasccar, Réunion and Mauritius, as well as in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and from Pakistan along the western coast of India to Sri Lanka. [1] It is found over rocky substrates at depths between 60 and 100 m (200 and 330 ft) with juveniles seeking protection in estuaries at the approach of stormy weather. [7]
Cheimerius adults occur in loose schools mainly above deeper, rather falt reefs while juveniles are found in shallow reefs and over sand adjacent to reefs at depths between 7 and 60 m (23 and 197 ft). The eggs and larvae of the santer seabream are distributed inshore of the Agulhas Current along the eastern coast of South Africa. The adults apparently do not travel on extensive migrations, although, they do seem to be nomadic, moving from one reef complex to another, but they have been recorded undertaking local migrations into shallow water at the approach of stormy weather or in the aftermath cold water upwellings. The main prey of this fish is other fishes and squid. The males have some ovarian tissue but this species is thought to be mainly gonochoristic, although there is some evidence for protogyny. Off Oman spawning was observed twice a year with the primary spawning season occurring in July to August and coinciding with the monsoon, the secondary season running from May to June. [1]
Cheimerius is an important target species for commercial fisheries wherever it occurs, and in some areas for recreational fisheries too. [1] The larvae have been raised in aquaculture settings. The IUCN classify this species as Data deficient because in some areas, such as Mozambique, there is evidence of overfishing and there is insufficient data on its total population. [1]
Sparidae is a family of ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Spariformes, the sea breams and porgies, although they were traditionally classified in the order Perciformes. They are found in shallow temperate and tropical waters around the world and are demersal carnivores.
Acanthopagrus latus, the yellowfin seabream, grey bream, Houttuyn's yellowfin seabream, Japanese bream or yellow-finned black porgy, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This fish is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.
Argyrops spinifer, the king soldierbream, Bowen snapper, long-spined red bream, longfin snapper, longspine seabream and red bokako, It is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae. This species is found in the Indian Ocean.
Monotaxis grandoculis, the humpnose big-eye bream, bigeye barenose, bigeye bream, bigeye emperor, grand-eyed porgy fish, humpnose sea-bream, large-eye bream,mu and roundtooth large-eye bream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. This species is found in the Indian and Pacific Ocean.
Archosargus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. These fishes occur in the Western Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Oceans.
Gnathodentex is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors or emperor breams. It is a monotypic genus, containing a single species, the goldspot seabream, also known as the striped large-eye bream. This taxon has a wide distribution in Indo-West Pacific region.
Gymnocranius is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. These fishes are found in the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean.
Acanthopagrus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. The fish in this genus are found in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans.
Nemipterus bipunctatus, the Delagoa threadfin bream, Bleeker's threadfin bream or butterfly bream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nemipteridae, the threadfin and whiptail breams. This demersal fish is found over soft bottoms in the Indian Ocean.
Acanthopagrus berda, the goldsilk seabream, sly bream, picnic seabream, black sea bream, black porgy, picky bream, silver bream or river bream, is a species of ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. This species is found in the Indian Ocean.
Gymnocranius griseus, the grey large-eye bream, barred large-eye bream, grey emperor, grey seabream and naked-head seabream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. This species is found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Amamiichthys is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. Its only species is Amamiichthys matsubarai, the Japanese blue-spotted seabream or hosheirenko. This species is endemic to the Amami Islands of southern Japan.
Argyrozona is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and progies. Its only species is Argyrozona argyrozona, the carpenter seabream or doppie, which is endemic to the waters off southern South Africa.
Argyrops is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. These fishes are found in the coasts of Indian Ocean and near Australia.
Argyrops bleekeri, the Taiwan tai, frypan bream, Bowen snapper, frypan snapper, king soldier bream, longfin snapper or longspine snapper, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This species is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.
Booposoidea is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. The only species in the genus is Boopsoidea inornata, the Fransmadam or Karel grootoog, which is endemic to the southwestern Indian Ocean off South Africa.
Gymnocranius grandoculis, the blue-lined large-eye bream, iodine bream, Maori sea bream or Robinson's sea bream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emeprors and emperor breams. This fish has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution.
Lethrinus variegatus, the slender emperor or variegated emperor, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. This fish has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution.
Acanthopagrus bifasciatus, the twobar seabream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. This species is found in the northwestern Indian Ocean.
Argyrops filamentosus, the soldierbream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This fish is found in the Western Indian Ocean.