Blacksaddle filefish
| Blacksaddle filefish | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Tetraodontiformes |
| Family: | Monacanthidae |
| Genus: | Paraluteres |
| Species: | P. prionurus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Paraluteres prionurus (Bleeker, 1851)
| |
The blacksaddle filefish, Paraluteres prionurus, is a filefish of the family Monacanthidae. It reaches a length of a maximum 11 cm.
The blacksaddle filefish are found in pairs or in small schools and inhabit reefs across the Indian and Pacific oceans.
Coloration is sandy to grey with distinctive black "saddles" on the back and a yellow tail.
Mimicry
The blacksaddle filefish is a Batesian mimic of the highly toxic pufferfish Canthigaster valentini,[1] which is commonly found where ever P. prionurus is found. The two species have been known to school together.
Blacksaddle filefish (Paraluetes prionurus)
Black-saddled toby (Canthigaster valentini)
Gallery
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Three black saddle filefish with a black-saddled toby
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Juvenile
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Young female
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References
- ^ Julian Caley, M.; Schluter, Dolph (2003-04-07). "Predators favour mimicry in a tropical reef fish". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences. 270 (1516): 667–672. doi:10.1098/rspb.2002.2263. ISSN 0962-8452. PMC 1691296. PMID 12713739.
- Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Paraluteres prionurus". FishBase. November 2006 version.
External links
- Photos of Blacksaddle filefish in the Sealife Collection
Media related to Paraluteres prionurus at Wikimedia Commons