Schultz's pipefish

Schultz's pipefish
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Syngnathiformes
Family: Syngnathidae
Genus: Corythoichthys
Species: C. schultzi
Binomial name
Corythoichthys schultzi
Herald, 1953

Schultz's pipefish, Corythoichthys schultzi, is a pipefish of the family Syngnathidae.

Etymology

The genus name Corythoichthys derives from the Greek words «coris», meaning «helmet» and «ichthus» meaning fish. The species name «schultzi» honors Leonard Peter Schultz, an American ichthyologist of the Smithsonian Institution (Washington).

Description

Corythoichthys schultzi at Hurghada, Red Sea

Corythoichthys schultzi can reach a length of a length up to 16 cm in males. The body is cylindrical and very elongated. These pipefishes have a cryptic coloration making the difficult to be detected by both prey and predators. The basic color of the body is whitish, with small black, brown and reddish dashes and yellowish rings. The eyes are protruding and the snout is long, slightly compressed and thinner than the body. The caudal fin is present but quite small. Adults may form small aggregation. Ovoviviparous, the male carries the eggs in a brood pouch which is found under the tail. In this pouch they also carry the developing young pipefishes.

Distribution

This species is widespread throughout the Indo-Pacific Oceans, from Red Sea and East Africa to Tonga, throughout Micronesia, northern Australia and New Caledonia.

Habitat

Schultz's pipefish is benthic species associated to coral reef. It usually can be found in lagoon and seaward reefs at depths of between 2 and 30 m.

References

Schultz, L. P., Herald, E. S., Lachner, E. A., Welander, A. D. & Woods, L. P., 1953. Fishes of the Marshall and Marianas islands. Vol. I. Families from Asymmetrontidae through Siganidae. Bulletin of the United States National Museum Núm. 202, v. 1: i-xxxii + 1-685, Pls. 1-74.

Breder, C.M. i D.E. Rosen, 1966. Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey, US. 941 p.

Fricke, R., 1999. Fishes of the Mascarene Islands (Réunion, Mauritius, Rodriguez): an annotated checklist, with descriptions of new species. Koeltz Scientific Books, Koenigstein, Theses Zoologicae, Vol. 31: 759 p.

Murdy, E.O., C.J. Ferraris, Jr., D.I. Hoese i R.C. Steene, 1981. Preliminary list of fishes from Sombrero Island, Philippines, with fifteen new records. Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 94(4):1163-1173.

Bibliography

  • Dawson, C. E., 1977: Review of the pipefish genus Corythoichthys with description of three new species. Copeia 1977: 295-338.
  • Dawson, C.E., 1985. Indo-Pacific pipefishes (Red Sea to the Americas). The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory Ocean Springs, Mississippi, US.
  • Eschmeyer, William N.: Genera of Recent Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco, California, US. iii + 697. ISBN 0-940228-23-8. Any 1990.
  • Eschmeyer, William N., ed. 1998. Catalog of Fishes. Special Publication of the Center for Biodiversity Research and Information, núm. 1, vol. 1-3. California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco, California, US. ISBN 0-940228-47-5.
  • Hardy, J.D. Jr., 2003. Coral reef fish species. NOAA\National Oceanographic Data Center. NODC Coral Reef Data and Information Management System. US. 537 p.
  • Helfman, G., B. Collette i D. Facey: The diversity of fishes. Blackwell Science, Malden, Massachusetts, US, 1997.
  • Lourie, S. A., Amanda C.J. Vincent i Heather J. Hall: Seahorses: An Identification Guide to the World's Species and their Conservation. Dorling Print Limited, Dorling House: London, Great Britain: Project Seahorse, 1999.
  • Moyle, P. i J. Cech.: Fishes: An Introduction to Ichthyology, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, US: Prentice-Hall. Any 2000.
  • Nelson, Joseph S.: Fishes of the World, John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-25031-7. Any 2006.
  • Wheeler, A.: The World Encyclopedia of Fishes, London: Macdonald. Any 1985.
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