Lobotes

Lobotes is a genus of ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Lobotidae known as the tripletails. These fishes are found in subtropical and tropical waters in all oceans.

Tripletail
Atlantic tripletail (Lobotes surinamensis)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Spariformes
Family: Lobotidae
T. N. Gill, 1861
Genus: Lobotes
G. Cuvier, 1830
Type species
Holocentrus surinamensis
Bloch, 1790
Synonyms[1]
  • Verrugato Jordan, 1923

Taxonomy

Lobotes was first proposed as a genus in 1830 by the French zoologist Georges Cuvier with Holocentrus surinamensis, originally described by Marcus Elieser Bloch in 1790 from Suriname, as its type species.[1][2] Some authorities treat Lobotes as a monospecific genus with L. pacifica being regarded as a synonym of a single pantropical L. surinamensis.[3] Lobotes is one of two genera in the family Lobotidae which the 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies in the order Spariformes.[4]

Species

The currently recognized species in this genus are:[5]

Characteristics

Lobotes species are characterised by having a rather compressed rectangular body with a slightly protruding upper jaw. They do not have any vomerine or palatine teeth. The preoperculum has serrations along its edge and the operculum has two flat spines hidden in the skin. The dorsal fin is supported by 12 robust spines and 15 or 16 soft rays and is continuous. The anal fin contains 3 spines and 11 soft rays. The soft rayed parts of the dorsal and anal fins are high and have rounded ends reaching past the caudal peduncle to resemble additional tails. The pectoral fins are shorter than the pelvic fins and the caudal fin is rounded. Ctenoid scales cover the body, including the base of the dorsal and anal fins, although they are not present on the cheek.[6] Of the two species the Atlantic tripletail has a slightly longer maximum published total length of 110 cm (43 in) than the Pacific tripletail’s at 100 cm (39 in).[5]

Distribution and habitat

Lobotes tripletails are found in warm waters throughout the world. They are coastal fishes and can be found in estuaries, bays and inlets and will often be found around man-made objects, typically singly but they will school at times. Juveniles often float among Sargasssum weed.[3]

References
  1. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Lobotidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  2. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Lobotes". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  3. Tina Perrota. "Lobotes surinamensis". Discover Fishes. Florida Museum. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  4. 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.
  5. Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2023). Species of Lobotes in FishBase. June 2023 version.
  6. "Genus: Lobotes, Tripletails". Shorefishes of the Eastern Pacific online information system. Smithsonian. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
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