Nuchequula gerreoides

Nuchequula gerreoides, commonly known as the longspine ponyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a ponyfish from the family Leiognathidae. It is a fish of brackish and sea waters which is found in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans.

Nuchequula gerreoides
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Leiognathidae
Genus: Nuchequula
Species:
N. gerreoides
Binomial name
Nuchequula gerreoides
(Bleeker, 1851)
Synonyms[1]
  • Equula gerreoides Bleeker, 1851
  • Equula decora De Vis, 1884
  • Leiognathus decorus (De Vis, 1884)
  • Nuchequula decora (De Vis, 1884)

Description

Nuchequula gerreoides are typically silver with long spines running along their back and stomach. Some fish may also be brown or gray with either yellow or blue spots on their bodies. The max length a Nuchequula gerreoide can grow is 12.5 centimeters.[1]

Environment

Nuchequula gerreoides live in coastal waters in a depth of 10 to 30 meters.[2] They are commonly found in estuaries, which is where the tide of the river meets the sea.[3] Nuchequula gerreoides are demersal fish, which means that they normally live close to the floor in seas or lakes.[4] They periodically migrate from salt water to fresh water, this is a process called amphidromous.[5] Generally, fish that do this migrate for breeding purposes, but the cause of their migration is unknown.

Diet

The diet of Nuchequula gerreoides depends on their size. If the fish are smaller, approximately less than 6.9 centimeters, their diet would consist of small crustaceans. [1] If the fish are bigger, approximately greater than 7.0 centimeters, their diet would consist of amphipods, polychaetes, and detritus.[1]

Reproduction

Fertilization for these fish takes place outside the body. The eggs are either released in open water or scattered beneath the surface of the sea floor.[1] They do not guard their eggs and do not take care of the fish after they are born.

References
  1. Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2019). "Nuchequula gerreoides" in FishBase. December 2019 version.
  2. "Nuchequula gerreoides (Bleeker, 1851)". India Biodiversity Portal. Retrieved 2018-12-12.
  3. US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "What is an estuary?". oceanservice.noaa.gov. Retrieved 2018-12-12.
  4. "demersal | Definition of demersal in English by Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford Dictionaries | English. Retrieved 2018-12-12.
  5. "Definition of AMPHIDROMOUS". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2018-12-12.


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