SIPHAMIA MAJIMAI - (MATSUBARA & IWAI, 1958)
Actinopterygii (Gigaclass) > Actinopteri (Class) > Teleostei (Subclass) > Kurtiformes (Order) > Apogonidae (Family) > Apogoninae (Subfamily) > Siphamia (Genus)
Striped siphonfish, Zariba fish, Leuchtkardinalbarsch, Majima-kuro-ishimochi, マジマクロイシモチ, 大面侧仔, 日本吸红天竺鲷,
Synonymes
Siphamia majimae (Matsubara & Iwai, 1958)
Siphamia zaribae (Whitley, 1959)
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Description
Dorsal spines (total): 6-7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9-10; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 8; Pectoral-fin rays: 15; Pelvic-fin rays: I, 5; Pored lateral-line scales: 23-24; Predorsal scales: 6; Circumpeduncular scales: 12; Total gill rakers: 13–14, developed gill rakers: 7–8; Vertebrae: 24 (10+14); Head large; Body and weakly ctenoid scales covered with a mucous membrane. Max length: 3.5 cm SL. Depth range: 1 - 18 m.
Color
Body uniformly black or blackish silver, with numerous small red spots on body and fins. Luminous organ inside translucent muscles of ventral body from throat to caudal peduncle containing symbiotic luminescent bacteria.
Etymology
Siphamia: from Ancient Greek, síphōn = pipe, tube, siphon + from Greek, amia, -as = a kind of bonito. Name given by Aristotle to a fish (Later name applied to Apogon by Gronow (1763), now a commonly used suffix in the family). Referring to silvery dusky tubiform gland of Siphamia tubifer (Weber, 1909), running from beneath tongue, along lower sides of body, past vent, almost to caudal-fin base (later discovered to be bioluminescent).
majimai: in honor of shell collector Toyohiko Majima, who helped the authors with their ichthyological collections at Ankyaba and Urasokari (type locality).
Original description: Siphamia majimai Matsubara & Iwai, 1958 - Type locality: collected from rocky and deep tide-pool at Urasokari, Amami-Oshima, Japan (about 28°07'N, 129°20'E) on 1st July 1958 - Miku (Marine Biological Institute of Kyoto University).
Distribution
Western Pacific: from the Ryukyu and Ogasawara islands of Japan to northwestern Australia and Queensland, New Caledonia, Tonga.
Biology
Commensal with sea urchins (Diadema setosum (Leske, 1778) or Echinothrix calamaris (Pallas, 1774)) and crown of thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci (Linnaeus, 1758)). Occurs in small groups. Also found in sheltered reefs and adjacent sand, rubble and rocky bottoms. Distinct pairing during courtship and spawning.
Similar species
Siphamia brevilux (Gon & Allen, 2012) - Reported from Western Pacific: Papua New Guinea.
Striped siphonfish, Zariba fish, Leuchtkardinalbarsch, Majima-kuro-ishimochi, マジマクロイシモチ, 大面侧仔, 日本吸红天竺鲷,
Synonymes
Siphamia majimae (Matsubara & Iwai, 1958)
Siphamia zaribae (Whitley, 1959)
---------------------------------------------
Description
Dorsal spines (total): 6-7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9-10; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 8; Pectoral-fin rays: 15; Pelvic-fin rays: I, 5; Pored lateral-line scales: 23-24; Predorsal scales: 6; Circumpeduncular scales: 12; Total gill rakers: 13–14, developed gill rakers: 7–8; Vertebrae: 24 (10+14); Head large; Body and weakly ctenoid scales covered with a mucous membrane. Max length: 3.5 cm SL. Depth range: 1 - 18 m.
Color
Body uniformly black or blackish silver, with numerous small red spots on body and fins. Luminous organ inside translucent muscles of ventral body from throat to caudal peduncle containing symbiotic luminescent bacteria.
Etymology
Siphamia: from Ancient Greek, síphōn = pipe, tube, siphon + from Greek, amia, -as = a kind of bonito. Name given by Aristotle to a fish (Later name applied to Apogon by Gronow (1763), now a commonly used suffix in the family). Referring to silvery dusky tubiform gland of Siphamia tubifer (Weber, 1909), running from beneath tongue, along lower sides of body, past vent, almost to caudal-fin base (later discovered to be bioluminescent).
majimai: in honor of shell collector Toyohiko Majima, who helped the authors with their ichthyological collections at Ankyaba and Urasokari (type locality).
Original description: Siphamia majimai Matsubara & Iwai, 1958 - Type locality: collected from rocky and deep tide-pool at Urasokari, Amami-Oshima, Japan (about 28°07'N, 129°20'E) on 1st July 1958 - Miku (Marine Biological Institute of Kyoto University).
Distribution
Western Pacific: from the Ryukyu and Ogasawara islands of Japan to northwestern Australia and Queensland, New Caledonia, Tonga.
Biology
Commensal with sea urchins (Diadema setosum (Leske, 1778) or Echinothrix calamaris (Pallas, 1774)) and crown of thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci (Linnaeus, 1758)). Occurs in small groups. Also found in sheltered reefs and adjacent sand, rubble and rocky bottoms. Distinct pairing during courtship and spawning.
Similar species
Siphamia brevilux (Gon & Allen, 2012) - Reported from Western Pacific: Papua New Guinea.