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Pontinus tentacularis

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pontinus tentacularis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Scorpaenidae
Genus: Pontinus
Species:
P. tentacularis
Binomial name
Pontinus tentacularis
(Fowler, 1938)
Synonyms[1]
  • Nemapontinus tentacularis Fowler, 1938
  • Pontius tentacularis (Fowler, 1938)

Pontinus tentacularis is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. It is found in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans.

Taxonomy

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Pontinus tentacularis was first formally described in 1938 by the American ichthyologist Henry Weed Fowler with the type being collected in region of northern Mindanao in the Philippines.[2] This species is thought by some authorities to be conspecific with P. rhodochrous and maybe P. macrocephalus.[3] The specific name tentacularis means "having tentacles", a reference to the tentacles above the eyes.[4]

Description

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Pontinus tentacularishas an oval shaped compressed, body with a compressed head with a large mouth.[5] The body has a depth which is just over a quarter of its standard length.[6] There are well developed spines on the head and there are elongated supraorbital tentacles. The dorsal fin has 12 spines and 9 soft rays, the soft rayed part of the dorsal fin is rounded, The anal fin has 3 spines and 5 soft rays. The caudal fin is rounded. The colour is brown with darker and lighter shading with 5 dark saddle marks along the back but these do not extend onto the dorsal fin. The fins are light brown and the supraorbital tentacle is blackish.[5]

Distribution and habitat

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Pontinus tentacularis is found in the Indian Ocean from the Réunion and Mauritius east to the Philippines in the western Pacific Ocean. It is a marine demersal fish which lives at depths between 170 and 600 m (560 and 1,970 ft).[6] This species occurs over seamounts and knolls.[7]

Observations

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Pontinus tentacularis is harmless for humans.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Catalogue of Life". catalogueoflife.org. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  2. ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Pontinus". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  3. ^ Bray, D.J. (2019). "Pontinus rhodochrous". Fishes of Australia. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  4. ^ 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 25 January 2022.
  5. ^ a b Fowler, H. W. (1938). "Descriptions of new fishes obtained by the United States Bureau of Fisheries steamer "Albatross", chiefly in Philippine seas and adjacent waters". Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 85 (3032): 31–135.
  6. ^ a b c Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2021). "Pontinus tentacularis". FishBase. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |mointh= ignored (help)
  7. ^ Nicolas Bailly (2008). "Pontinus tentacularis (Fowler, 1938)". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 25 January 2022.

Bibliography

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  • Anonymous, 2001. Database of the collection of fishes of the National Museum of Natural History (Smithsonian Institution). Smithsonian Institution - Division of Fishes.
  • Wu, H.L., K.-T. Shao And C.F. Lai (eds.), 1999. Latin-Chinese dictionary of fishes names. The Sueichan Press, Taiwan.
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