Pelates quadrilineatus

Pelates quadrilineatus, also known as the trumpeter perch or fourlined terapon,[4] is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Terapontidae, the grunters. It occurs in the western Indo-Pacific region, and also in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, having arrived there by passing through the Suez Canal.

Pelates quadrilineatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Terapontidae
Genus: Pelates
Species:
P. quadrilineatus
Binomial name
Pelates quadrilineatus
(Bloch, 1790) [2]
Synonyms[3]
  • Holocentrus quadrilineatus Bloch, 1790
  • Therapon quadrilineatus (Bloch, 1790)
  • Pristipoma sexlineatum Quoy & Gaimard, 1824

Description

This fish grows to a maximum standard length of 15 cm (6 in), but a more usual length is 8 to 10 cm (3 to 4 in). The jaws are of equal length and the mouth slopes obliquely downward; the front row of teeth are large and flattened, and are tipped with brown. The body is laterally compressed and moderately deep. The dorsal fin has twelve or thirteen spines and nine to eleven soft rays. The anal fin has three spines and nine to ten soft rays. The colour is silvery with four to six dark longitudinal stripes which do not extend onto the caudal fin. There may be a dark patch behind the head and another in front of the dorsal fin. The caudal fin may be either pale or dusky.[5][3]

Distribution and habitat

Pelates quadrilineatus is native to the western Indo-Pacific region. Its range extends from the eastern coast of Africa and the Red Sea to northern Australia, New Guinea and Japan. It also occurs in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, having passed through the Suez Canal as a Lessepsian migrant. It occurs on reefs in coastal waters at depths down to about 20 m (66 ft),[5] often being found in estuaries and brackish water. The juveniles also occur in seagrass meadows and among mangroves.[3]

Ecology

Pelates quadrilineatus is a schooling fish and a predator, feeding on invertebrates and small fishes. When removed from the water it makes a croaking sound.[3] The male fish gives parental care to the eggs, guarding them and fanning them to keep them well oxygenated.[3]

References
  1. Kaymaram, F.; Al-Husaini, M.; Almukhtar, M.; Hartmann, S.; Alam, S. & Alghawzi, Q. (2015). "Pelates quadrilineatus (Persian Gulf)". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2015: e.T180694A57280477. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  2. Bailly, Nicolas (2018). "Therapon quadrilineatus (Bloch, 1790)". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  3. Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2019). "Pelates quadrilineatus" in FishBase. December 2019 version.
  4. Munro, Ian Stafford Ross (2000). The Marine and Fresh Water Fishes of Ceylon. Daya books. p. 115. ISBN 9788176220446.
  5. "Four-lined terapon (Pelates quadrilineatus)". Fishes of the NE Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Marine Species Identification Portal. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
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