Lethrinus_crocineus
Lethrinus crocineus
Species of marine fish
Lethrinus crocineus, the yellowtail emperor, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. This fish is found in the Indian Ocean.
| Lethrinus crocineus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Spariformes |
| Family: | Lethrinidae |
| Genus: | Lethrinus |
| Species: | L. crocineus |
| Binomial name | |
| Lethrinus crocineus J. L. B. Smith, 1959 | |
Lethrinus crocineus was first formally described in 1959 by the South African ichthyologist James Leonard Brierley Smith given as Pinda in Mozambique.[2] Some authors place the genus Lethrinus in the monotypic subfamily Lethrininae, with all the other genera of Lethrinidae placed in the Monotaxinae, however, the 5th edition of Fishes of the World does not recognise the subfamilies traditionally accepted within the family Lethrinidae as valid. The family Lethrinidae is classified by the 5th edition of Fishes of the World as belonging to the order Spariformes.[3]
Lethrinus crocineus has the specific name crocineus which means "saffron", an allusion Smith did not explain, although it may be a reference to the mostly yellowish colour of living specimens.[4]
Lethrinus crocineus has its dorsal fin supported by 10 spines and 9 soft rays while there are 3 spines and 8 soft rays supporting the anal fin.[5] It has a rather deep body with the body's depth fitting 2.3 to 2.4 times into its standard length. The head has a straight profile and a short snout.[6] It has rounded teeth in its jaws, although these are more molariform laterally. The inner surface of the axilla of the pectoral fin has a dense covering of scales. It has a grey or brownish head, the body is grey or tan with black bases to the scales. The margins of the operculum and the dorsal and anal fins are reddish.[7] This species has a maximum published total length of 60 cm (24 in).[5]
Lethrinus crocineus is found in the Indian Ocean where it has a rather disjunct distribution. It occurs along the eastern coast of Africa between Kenya and South Africa, in the Comoro Islands, off Madagascar, the Seychelles, the Mascarene Islands, Sri Lanka and in the Andaman Sea.[1] It is found on reefs and in sandy areas close to reefs as depths down to around 150 m (490 ft).[7]
Lethrinus crocineus is a solitary fish but does gather in aggregations to spawn in April and May. This fish hints its prey at night.[1]
Lethrinus crocineus is fished for using handlines and is sold as fresh fish. It is not a common fish and os not threatened by fisheries.[1]
- Al Abdali, F.S.H.; Al Buwaiqi, B.; Al Kindi, A.S.M.; Ambuali, A.; Borsa, P.; Carpenter, K.E.; Russell, B. & Govender, A. (2019). "Lethrinus crocineus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T16719989A16722320. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T16719989A16722320.en. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
- Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Lethrinus". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
- Nelson, J.S.; Grande, T.C.; Wilson, M.V.H. (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 502–506. doi:10.1002/9781119174844. ISBN 978-1-118-34233-6. LCCN 2015037522. OCLC 951899884. OL 25909650M.
- "Order SPARIFORMES: Families LETHRINIDAE, NEMIPTERIDAE and SPARIDAE". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf. 17 October 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
- Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2023). "Lethrinus crocineus" in FishBase. October 2023 version.
- Kent E. Carpenter; Gerald R. Allen (1989). Emperor fishes and large-eye breams of the world (Family Lethrinidae). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of lethrinid species known to date (PDF). FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 9. FAO, Rome. pp. 27–28.
- Kent E. Carpenter (2022). "Family Lethrinidae". In Phillip C Heemstra; Elaine Heemstra; David A Ebert; Wouter Holleman; John E Randall (eds.). Coastal Fishes of the Western Indian Ocean (PDF). Vol. 3. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity. pp. 316–327. ISBN 978-1-990951-32-9.