Sandperch

Last updated

Sandperches
Parapercis hexophtalma 1.jpg
Speckled sandperch, Parapercis hexophtalma
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Trachiniformes
Family: Pinguipedidae
Günther, 1860
Genera

See text

Synonyms [1]

Parapercidae

The sandperches are a family, Pinguipedidae, of fishes in the percomorph order Trachiniformes. Sandperches are benthic fish which normally occur over sand or rubble substrates in shallow seas. They are found off the coasts of South America, South Africa and in the Indo-Pacific as far east as Japan. The family contains a few species which are used by humans for food.

Contents

Characteristics

Some sandperches resemble wrasse in that they possess long dorsal and anal fins which may have a few spines and enlarged lips that appear to curl back with big canine teeth in the front of the jaws. They have elongated bodies which are flattened posteriorly and cylindrical towards the head. The body usually patterned with spots and bands, The eyes are positioned near top of head. They are relatively small in size, normally 60–90 centimetres (24–35 in) in length. These fish tend to sit on the sea bed, their bodies propped up by the widely separated pelvic fins. Some of the members of the speciose genus Parapercis , maybe all of them, are sequential hermaphrodites, all being female at sexual maturity and later changing into males which frequently have significantly different colourings and markings. [2] [3]

Genera

The family Pinguipedidae contains seven genera with a total of 65 species. The genera are: [1]

Timeline

QuaternaryNeogenePaleogeneHolocenePleist.Plio.MioceneOligoceneEocenePaleoceneParapercisQuaternaryNeogenePaleogeneHolocenePleist.Plio.MioceneOligoceneEocenePaleoceneSandperch

Related Research Articles

Blue cod Species of fish

The New Zealand blue cod is a temperate marine fish of the family Pinguipedidae. It is also known variously as Boston blue cod, New Zealand cod, sand perch, or its Māori names rāwaru, pākirikiri and patutuki.

Moray eel Family of fishes

Moray eels, or Muraenidae, are a family of eels whose members are found worldwide. There are approximately 200 species in 15 genera which are almost exclusively marine, but several species are regularly seen in brackish water, and a few are found in fresh water.

Threadfin Family of fishes

Threadfins are silvery grey perciform fish of the family Polynemidae. Found in tropical to subtropical waters throughout the world, the threadfin family contains eight genera and about 40 species. An unrelated species sometimes known by the name threadfin, Alectis indicus, is properly the Indian threadfish.

Macrouridae Family of fishes

Macroudidae is a family of deep sea fish, a diverse and ecologically important group, which are part of the order of cod-like fish, the Gadiformes. The species in the Macrouridae are characterised by their large heads which normally have a single barbel on the chin, projecting snouts, and slender bodies that taper to whip-like tails, without an obvious caudal fin but what there is of the caudal fin is often confluent with the posterior dorsal and anal fins. There are normally two dorsal fins, the anterior dorsal fin is quite high, the posterior quite low but is longer and takes up a greater proportion of the fish's of the back, species in the subfamily Macrouroidinae have a single dorsal fin. The long anal fin is almost as long as the second dorsal fin is nearly as long as the posterior dorsal, and sometimes it is longer. The pelvic fin is inserted in the vicinity of the thorax and normally has 5-17 fin rays but are absent in Macrouroides. The body is covered in small scales and if they have a photophore, it is usually on the midline of the abdomen just in front of the anus. The bioluminescence of these fish is produced by symbiotic bioluminescent bacteria. The structure of the skull has been used to show their placing in the Gadiformes, but they differ from the typical cods in that they possess one stout spine in the anterior dorsal fin.

<i>Epinephelus</i> Genus of fishes

Epinephelus is a genus of marine ray-finned fish, groupers from the subfamily Epinephelinae, part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. They are predatory fish, largely associated with reefs and are found in tropical and subtropical seas throughout the world. They are important target species for fisheries.

Priacanthidae Family of fishes

The Priacanthidae, the bigeyes, are a family of 18 species of marine ray-finned fishes. "Catalufa" is an alternate common name for some members of the Priacanthidae. The etymology of the scientific name refers to the family's very rough, spined scales. The common name of "bigeye" refers to the member species' unusually large eyes, suited to their carnivorous and nocturnal lifestyles. Priacanthidae are typically colored bright red, but some have patterns in silver, dusky brown, or black. Most species reach a maximum total length of about 30 cm (12 in), although in a few species lengths of over 50 cm (20 in) are known.

Sillaginidae Family of fishes

The Sillaginidae, commonly known as the smelt-whitings, whitings, sillaginids, sand borers and sand-smelts, are a family of benthic coastal marine fish in the order Perciformes. The smelt-whitings inhabit a wide region covering much of the Indo-Pacific, from the west coast of Africa east to Japan and south to Australia. The family comprises only five genera and 35 species, of which a number are dubious, with the last major revision of the family in 1992 unable to confirm the validity of a number of species. They are elongated, slightly compressed fish, often light brown to silver in colour, with a variety of markings and patterns on their upper bodies. The Sillaginidae are not related to a number of fishes commonly called 'whiting' in the Northern Hemisphere, including the fish originally called whiting, Merlangius merlangus.

Bludger (fish) Species of fish

The bludger, also known as the bludger trevally, nakedbreast trevally or Bleeker's jackfish, is a widespread species of large marine fish in the jack family, Carangidae. The bludger inhabits the tropical and subtropical regions of the Indo-west Pacific Ocean, distributed from South Africa in the west to Japan and New Caledonia in the east. It is a large fish, growing to a maximum recorded length of 90 cm, and is very similar to the yellowspotted trevally, Carangoides fulvoguttatus, but can be separated by the complete absence of breast scales and a number of other anatomical features. The species inhabits moderately deep offshore coral and rocky reefs, where it preys on small crustaceans and fish. The reproductive biology of the species is poorly known, but it appears to move to more tropical waters to spawn. The bludger is of intermediate importance to fisheries throughout its range, taken by hook and line and various netting methods. It is of some value to anglers also, considered a good gamefish, but generally regarded as poor eating due to its soft oily flesh, which is used as bait by many anglers. The name ‘bludger’ is said to either refer to the blunt head of the species, or the destination of the fish when caught by professional fishermen who treat the fish as discard.

Cleftbelly trevally Species of fish

The cleftbelly trevally, also known as the cleftbelly kingfish, Kuweh trevally or thin crevalle, is a species of tropical marine fish of the jack family, Carangidae. The species inhabits coastal waters throughout the Indo-West Pacific region from South Africa in the west to Japan in the east, often found near the water's surface. The cleftbelly trevally is the only member of the genus Atropus and is distinguished by a number of anatomical characteristics, with a deep median groove in the belly giving the species its common name. It is not a large fish, growing to a maximum recorded length of 26.5 cm. Cleftbelly trevally are predatory fish, taking a variety of small crustaceans and fish. The species is of minor importance to fisheries throughout its range.

Razorbelly scad Species of fish

The razorbelly scad is a small species of tropical marine fish in the jack family, Carangidae. The species inhabits coastal waters in the Indo-Pacific, from Pakistan in the west to Japan and Australia in the east, often found over reefs. The razorbelly scad has a complex taxonomic history, and even recently has had its position in the genus Alepes challenged, but appears to be stable after a molecular phylogeny study supported its placement in Alepes. It is very similar to other scads in the same genus, but is readily identified by its unique teeth. Razorbelly scad are predatory fish, taking a variety of crustaceans and shrimps, and show a change in feeding intensity over the year. Reproduction and development has been extensively studied in India, where spawning occurs in a single event from January to September. The species is commonly taken in tropical fisheries, where it is marketed fresh or dried.

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

Variola, the lyretails, is a genus of marine ray-finned fish, groupers from the subfamily Epinephelinae, part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. They are found in the tropical Indo-Pacific and their distribution extends from the Red Sea to South Africa across the Indian Ocean and east to the islands of the central Pacific.

Longnose trevally Species of fish

The longnose trevally, also known as the tea-leaf trevally, club-nosed trevally, grunting trevally or dusky trevally, is a species of inshore marine fish in the jack family, Carangidae. The species is distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the Indian and west Pacific Oceans from South Africa to New Zealand and Japan, inhabiting coastal waters, especially reefs, to a depth of 90 m. The longnose trevally is distinguished from similar species by a combination of a scaleless breast and the number of gill rakers and fin rays. It is a moderately large fish, growing to a maximum known length of 72 cm and 4.35 kg. The longnose trevally is a predatory fish, consuming small fish, crustaceans and molluscs. The species is of minor commercial importance throughout its range, and is considered to be a good table fish.

<i>Platax</i> Genus of fishes

Platax is a genus of Indo-Pacific, reef-associated fish belonging to the family Ephippidae. There are currently five known extant species generally accepted to belong to the genus. They are one of the fish taxa commonly known as "batfish".

<i>Parapercis cylindrica</i> Species of fish

Parapercis cylindrica, the cylindrical sandperch, is a species of sandperch belonging to the family Pinguipedidae.

<i>Parapercis</i> Genus of fishes

Parapercis is a genus of sandperches belonging to the fish family Pinguipedidae.

<i>Branchiostegus</i> Genus of fishes

Branchiostegus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes, tilefishes belonging to the family Malacanthidae. They are found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean through the Indian Ocean to the western Pacific Ocean. Here they create burrows in soft substrates in the comparatively deep waters of the continental shelf and slope.

<i>Parapercis hexophtalma</i> Species of fish

Parapercis hexophtalma, the speckled sandperch, is a species of marine bony fish in the family Pinguipedidae, found in the western Indo-Pacific Ocean. It was first described by the French naturalist Georges Cuvier in 1829. There are several synonyms, some of which represent misspellings of the original name, and others which were given to female fish, at the time thought to be a separate species.

<i>Parapercis maculata</i> Species of fish

Parapercis maculata, the harlequin sandperch, is a species of marine bony fish in the family Pinguipedidae, found in shallow waters in the tropical western Indo-Pacific Ocean.

<i>Parapercis schauinslandii</i> Species of fish

Parapercis schauinslandii, commonly known as redspotted sandperch, lyretail grubfish or flagfin weever, is a species of marine fish native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is a member of the sandperch family Pinguipedidae, form the percomorph order Trachiniformes.

<i>Parapercis alboguttata</i> Species of fish

Parapercis alboguttata, the bluenose grubfish, known also as the bluenose sandperch and whitespot sandsmelt, is a species of marine bony fish in the family Pinguipedidae, native to the western Indo-Pacific Ocean. It was first described by the German-born, British ichthyologist and zoologist, Albert Günther, in 1872.

References

  1. 1 2 Bailly N, ed. (2015). "Pinguipedidae Günther, 1860". FishBase . World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 19 June 2018.
  2. Randall, John E. (1995). Coastal Fishes of Oman. University of Hawaii Press. p. 304. ISBN   978-0-8248-1808-1.
  3. "Perciform Fish Form and Function". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 19 June 2018.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  4. Imamura & Yoshino (2007). "Ryukyupercis, a new genus of pinguipedid fish for the species Parapercis gushikeni (Teleostei: Perciformes) based on the phylogenetic relationships of the family". Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. Suppl 14: 94ff.