Pomacanthidae
Marine angelfish | |
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French angelfish, Pomacanthus paru | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Perciformes |
Superfamily: | Percoidea |
Family: | Pomacanthidae Jordan & Evermann, 1898[1] |
Genera | |
See text |
Marine angelfish are
Description
With their bright colours and deep, laterally compressed bodies, marine angelfishes are some of the more conspicuous residents of the reef. They most closely resemble the butterflyfishes, a related family of similarly showy reef fish. Marine angelfish are distinguished from butterflyfish by the presence of strong preopercle spines (part of the gill covers) in the former. This feature also explains the family name Pomacanthidae; from the Greek πομα, poma meaning "cover" and ακάνθα, akantha meaning "thorn".
Many species of marine angelfishes have streamer-like extensions of the soft
Angelfish vary in color and are very hardy fish. When kept in aquariums they can easily adapt to pH and hardness changes in water and can handle conditions that are not considered to be perfect. They are usually a long-living species and are easy to care for. They were very expensive in the aquarium trade when first discovered, but have become more popular and therefore less pricey.
The
As juveniles, some species are different colors than when they reach adulthood. For example, the Blue Angelfish is a vibrant, electric blue color with black and white stripes or spots. When they reach adulthood, they turn a grayish color with yellow and blue fins and dark spots on their bodies.
Behavior
The larger species are also quite bold and seemingly fearless; they are known to approach divers. While the majority adapts easily to captive life, some are specialist feeders which are difficult to maintain. Feeding habits can be strictly defined through genus, with
Most marine angelfishes restrict themselves to the shallows of the reef, seldom venturing deeper than 50 m (160 ft). The recently described Centropyge abei is known to inhabit depths of 150 m (490 ft). They are
Reproduction
Common to many species is a dramatic shift in coloration associated with maturity. For example, young male
As
In aquariums, two fish usually will breed within their community but will harass other fish in the tank, so it is best they have their own with plenty of room.
Characteristics
- Two-spined angelfish, (Centropage bispinosa) also known as the "coral beauty" or "dusky angelfish" has a vibrant blue or darkish purple body with a reddish-yellow underside that is usually covered in stripes.
- These stripes vary from purple, red and orange, and may even appear as spots.
- It is highly demanded in the tropical aquarium trade, but is at low risk on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
- The Coral Beauty Angelfish is native to the Indo-Pacific Ocean, usually found in shallow reefy waters or sometimes in deep waters.
- They feed on algae and hide in coral reefs and lagoons in the wild.
- The Two-spined angelfish usually reaches up to 3 inches and have a rounded caudal fin.
- In aquarium life they nibble on corals and rocks and are considered to be starter fish. They have a high metabolism so feeding only needs to occur every other day.
- The blue angelfish,[4][5][6] (Pomacanthus semicirculatus) is a vibrant, electric blue color with black and white stripes and sometimes spots as a juvenile. It turns a grayish color with dark spots and sometimes yellow and blue accents as an adult.
- Found in stony and soft corals and are more likely to be found in vibrantly colored corals as juveniles.
- Dorsal and pelvic fin help with speed.
- Tend to hide from predators in dark areas.
- Vibrant electric blue color allows them to pose as toxic to predators.
- There are 13 different species in the Pomacanthus genus.
- Rarely travel in schools and can grow up to 40 cm.
- Can live up to 25+ years. [7]
Twospined angelfish (Centropyge bispinosus) (Gunther, 1860) (Saltwater angelfish) | Indo-Pacific Ocean, Fiji, Indonesia, Vanuatu | |
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Pomacanthus semicirculatus (Goode, 1876) (Saltwater angelfish) | Indo-Pacific Ocean, Australia, Merimbula, New South Wales |
Taxonomy
The Pomacanthidae is frequently placed within the large order Perciformes but taxonomists have also placed the family within the order Acanthuriformes, alongside the Chaetodontidae and Acanthuridae, among others.[8] Other authorities have resolved the family as incertae sedis.[9]
There are 88 species in eight genera:[10][11]
Image | Genus | Number of Living Species |
---|---|---|
Apolemichthys M. Burton, 1934 | 8 | |
Centropyge Kaup, 1860 | 35 | |
Chaetodontoplus Bleeker, 1876 | 13 | |
Genicanthus Swainson, 1839 | 10 | |
Holacanthus Lacépède, 1803 | 8 | |
Paracentropyge W. E. Burgess , 1992 |
1 | |
Pomacanthus Lacépède, 1802 | 13 | |
Pygoplites Fraser-Brunner , 1933 |
1 |
Timeline
References
- PMID 25543675.
- PMID 24567392.
- ^ "Angels on the Pinnacle". YouTube.
French and gray angelfishes eating sponges on Conch Reef, Florida Keys.
- doi:10.2305/iucn.uk.2010-4.rlts.t165851a6148505.en.)
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(help - S2CID 4327563.
- ^ "Pomacanthus semicirculatus summary page". FishBase. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
- OCLC 1058193506.
- ^ Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara (21 July 2020). "Order ACANTHURIFORMES (part 1): Families LOBOTIDAE, POMACANTHIDAE, DREPANEIDAE and CHAETODONTIDAE". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
- PMID 28683774.
- ^ Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2006). "Pomacanthidae" in FishBase. December 2006 version.
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Pomacanthidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
Further reading
- Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2005). "Pomacanthidae" in FishBase. November 2005 version.
External links
- Skaphandrus.com Pomacanthidae photos