Dendrochirus

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Dendrochirus
Pterois ocele dendotrichus biocellatus.jpg
Twospot turkeyfish (D. biocellatus)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scorpaeniformes
Family: Scorpaenidae
Tribe: Pteroini
Genus: Dendrochirus
Swainson, 1839
Type species
Pterois zebra
G. Cuvier, 1829 [1]
Synonyms [1]
  • Brachirus Swainson, 1838
  • BrachyrusSwainson, 1839
  • Nemapterois Fowler, 1938

Dendrochirus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. They are mostly known as turkeyfishes or pygmy lionfishes. They are native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. They are also popular aquarium fish.

Contents

Taxonomy

Dendrochirus was described as a genus in 1839 by the English naturalist William John Swainson. Swainson also named the genera Brachirus and Brachyrus in the same work but in later pages. In 1876 Pieter Bleeker revised the genus and chose Dendrochirus as the name for the genus. In 1882 Joseph Swain designated Pterois zebra, described by Georges Cuvier from Mauritius in 1829, as the type species of Brachyrus which he considered to be a synonym of Pterois. [1] [2] This genus is classified within the tribe Pteroini of the subfamily Scorpaeninae within the family Scorpaenidae. [3] Some authorities divide the genus into two subgenera, the subgenus Dendrochirus containing all the species except D. biocellatus which is in the monotypic subgenus Nemapterois which was created by Henry Weed Fowler in 1938. [4] [1] This genus and the genus Petrois are closely related and it has been suggested that they form a single genus, Pterois. [5] The genus name is a compound of dendro, meaning “tree”, and cheirus, which means “hand”, originally this genus was considered to be a subgenus of Pterois with branched rays in the pectoral fin. [4]

Species

Eight species are recognized in this genus: [6] [7]

ImageScientific nameCommon nameDistribution
Hawaiian Lionfish (Dendrochirus barberi) at the Waikiki Aquarium.JPG Dendrochirus barberi (Steindachner, 1900)Hawaiian lionfishEastern Central Pacific.
Dendrochirus bellus (D. S. Jordan & C. L. Hubbs, 1925)Bricked firefishSouth China Sea north to the Boso Peninsula, Pacific coast of central Japan
Dendrochirus biocellatus.jpg Dendrochirus biocellatus (Fowler, 1938)Twospot turkeyfishIndo-West Pacific
ShimahimeYKred.jpg Dendrochirus brachypterus (G. Cuvier, 1829)Shortfin turkeyfishIndo-West Pacific, Red Sea
Dendrochirus hemprichi Matsunuma, Motomura & Bogorodsky, 2017Red Sea dwarf lionfishWestern Indian Ocean
Dendrochirus koyo Matsunuma & Motomura, 2019Osagawara dwarf lionfishJapan
Dendrochirus tuamotuensis Matsunuma & Motomura, 2013 [7] Tuamotu's dwarf lionfishthe Tuamotu Archipelago, South Pacific Ocean.
Zebra Lionfish (Dendrochirus zebra) (45552894282).jpg Dendrochirus zebra (G. Cuvier, 1829)Zebra turkeyfishIndo-West Pacific, including the Red Sea

Characteristics

Dendrochirus lionfishes are characterised by typically having 13 spines and 9 or 10 soft rays in the dorsal fin and 3 spines and 5 or 6 soft rays in the anal fin. The spines on the parietal bone are not high and the lower jaw has no ridges, spines or scales. There are between 17 and 19 fin rays in the pectoral fins and the middle fin rays are branched. [8] These fishes vary in length from a standard length of 4.5 cm (1.8 in) in the Ogasawara dwarf-lionfish (D. koyo) to 25 cm (9.8 in) in the zebra turkeyfish (D. zebra). [6]

Distribution and habitat

Dendrochirus lionfishes are found in the Indo-Pacific from the Red Sea and the western Indian Ocean to Hawaii and Johnston Atoll.They tend to be associated with hard substrates such as coral rocks and rubble. [6]

Utilisation

Dendrochirus lionfishes are popular species in the aquarium hobby. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red lionfish</span> Species of fish

The red lionfish is a venomous coral reef fish in the family Scorpaenidae, order Scorpaeniformes. It is mainly native to the Indo-Pacific region, but has become an invasive species in the Caribbean Sea, as well as along the East Coast of the United States and East Mediterranean and also found in Brazil at Fernando de Noronha.

<i>Dendrochirus biocellatus</i> Species of fish

Dendrochirus biocellatus, the twospot turkeyfish, twinspot lionfish, twoeyed lionfish or ocellated lionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. This species is widespread throughout the tropical waters of the Indo-West Pacific region, In the wild, the species eats small fish as well as shrimp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clearfin lionfish</span> Species of fish

The clearfin lionfish, also called the tailbar lionfish, radiata lionfish, fireworks fish or radial firefish, is a carnivorous, ray-finned fish with venomous spines belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. This species lives in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans. This is the only lionfish species which has spines without any markings. It can also be recognized by the pair of horizontal white stripes on its caudal peduncle.

<i>Brachypterois</i> Genus

Brachypterois is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. They are native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean.

<i>Pteroidichthys</i> Genus of fishes

Pteroidichthys is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. The scorpionfishes in this genus are distributed in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

<i>Ebosia</i> Genus of fishes

Ebosia is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. They are known as falcate lionfishes. They are native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

<i>Parapterois</i> Genus of fishes

Parapterois is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. These fish originate from marine environments in the Indian Ocean or near it. The venomous Parapterois heterura is occasionally seen as an aquarium fish.

<i>Parapterois heterura</i> Species of fish

Parapterois heterura, the blackfoot firefish, blackfoot firefish, blue-fin lionfish, black-Foot lionfish or gurnard lionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. It is widely distributed on the southeastern coast of Africa as well as off Japan and in Indonesia where it is usually found in sheltered coastal bays with a soft bottom, such as fine sand or mud. It is found in depths ranging from 40 to 300 metres. This species is a sedentary fish and may even bury itself within the substrate. P. heterura flashes its brightly colored pectoral fins to startle predators and escape, but it may also use these fins to corner prey. This behavior has been demonstrated in other lionfish. This species can be found in the aquarium trade.

<i>Pterois miles</i> Species of fish

Pterois miles, the devil firefish or common lionfish, is a species of ray-finned fish native to the western Indo-Pacific region. It is frequently confused with its close relative, the red lionfish. The scientific name is from Greek pteron, meaning "wing", and Latin miles, meaning "soldier".

<i>Pterois antennata</i> Species of fish

Pterois antennata, the spotfin lionfish, banded lionfish, broadbarred lionfish, broadbarred firefish, raggedfinned firefish, raggedfinned scorpionfish or roughscaled lionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the tropical Indian and Western Pacific Oceans.

<i>Pterois mombasae</i> Species of fish

Pterois mombasae, the African lionfish, deepwater firefish or frillfin turkeyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the tropical Indian Ocean, typically in soft-bottomed areas of the ocean, often in conjunction with invertebrate growth. It grows to a maximum size of 20 cm, and is of moderate commercial value.

<i>Dendrochirus brachypterus</i> Species of fish

Dendrochirus brachypterus, the dwarf lionfish, short-finned turkeyfish, shortspine rockcod or shortspine scorpionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the Indo-Pacific. It is sometimes found in the aquarium trade.

<i>Dendrochirus barberi</i> Species of fish

Dendrochirus barberi, the Hawaiian lionfish or green lionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It occurs in the Eastern Central Pacific. It occasionally makes its way into the aquarium trade.

The Andover lionfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the western Pacific Ocean.

<i>Pterois sphex</i> Species of fish

Pterois sphex, the Hawaiian turkeyfish or Hawaiian lionfish is a species of ray-finned fish with venomous spines belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the eastern Central Pacific, specifically in marine waters off of Hawaii. It is found in seaward reefs and lagoons at depths from 3 – 122 m.

<i>Pterois russelii</i> Species of fish

Pterois russelii, the largetail turkeyfish, plaintail firefish, plaintail turkeyfish, Russell's firefish, Russell's lionfish, spotless butterfly-cod or the spotless firefish, is a species of ray-finned fish with venomous spines belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is native to the Indo-Pacific Ocean from the eastern part of Africa to the Persian Gulf.

Pterois brevipectoralis is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. This species is found in the Western Indian Ocean at a depth of 70 to 80 m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luna lionfish</span> Species of fish

The Luna lionfish, the dragon's beard fish or Japanese lionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, which consists of scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the western Pacific Ocean.

<i>Pterois cincta</i> Species of ray-finned fish

Pterois cincta, the Red Sea lionfish or Red Sea clearfin lionfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the Red Sea.

Pterois paucispinula is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes and lionfishes. It is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Scorpaenidae". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  2. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Dendrochirus". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  3. J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. pp. 468–475. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6.
  4. 1 2 Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (2 October 2021). "Order Perciformes (Part 9): Suborder Scorpaenoidei: Family Scorpaenidae". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  5. Kochzius, Marc; Soeller, Rainer; Khalaf, Maroof & Blohm, Dietmar (2003). "Molecular phylogeny of the lionfish genera Dendrochirus and Pterois (Scorpaenidae, Pteroinae) based on mitochondrial DNA sequences" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 28 (3): 396–403. doi:10.1016/S1055-7903(02)00444-X. PMID   12927126.
  6. 1 2 3 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2021). Species of Dendrochirus in FishBase . August 2021 version.
  7. 1 2 Matsunuma, M. & Motomura, H. (2013): A new lionfish of the genus Dendrochirus (Scorpaenidae: Pteroinae) from the Tuamotu Archipelago, South Pacific Ocean. Species Diversity, 18 (1): 1-7.
  8. Matsunuma, M.; H. Motomura; and S. V. Bogorodsky (2017). "Review of Indo-Pacific dwarf lionfishes (Scorpaenidae: Pteroinae) in the Dendrochirus brachypterus complex, with description of a new species from the western Indian Ocean". Ichthyological Research. 64 (4): 369–414. doi:10.1007/s10228-017-0583-6. S2CID   3234196.
  9. "Dwarf Lionfish Care Guide: Dendrochirus spp". Salt Water Aquarium Blog. 6 July 2021. Retrieved 27 February 2022.