Nemadactylus macropterus

Nemadactylus macropterus, the tarakihi, jackass morwong or deep sea perch, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, traditionally regarded as belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, the members of which are commonly known as morwongs. It is found in the south western Pacific Ocean, in Australia and New Zealand. Although there are records from the southern Indian Ocean and southwestern Atlantic, these may be due to misidentifications of similar species.

Nemadactylus macropterus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Cheilodactylidae
Genus: Nemadactylus
Species:
N. macropterus
Binomial name
Nemadactylus macropterus
Range (in blue)
Synonyms[1]
  • Cichla macroptera Forster, 1801
  • Cheilodactylus macropterus (Forster, 1801)
  • Dactylopagrus macropterus (Forster, 1801)

Taxonomy

Nemadactylus macropterus was first formally described in 1801 as Cichla macroptera by the German naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster with the type locality given as New Zealand.[2] In 1839 Sir John Richardson described a new species Nemadactylus concinnus from Tasmania he created the monotypic genus Nemadactylus for it, N. concinnus was later considered to be a synonym of Forster's C. macroptera, making this species the type species of the genus Nemadactylus as Richardson's N. concinnus.[3] The specific name macropterus means "long-winged", a reference to the very elongated seventh ray of the pectoral fins.[4] Genetic and morphological analyses strongly support the placement of Nemadactylus in the family Latridae, alongside almost all of the other species formerly classified in the Cheilodactylidae.[5]

Description

Nemadactylus macropterus has 17 - 18 spines and 25-28 soft rays in its dorsal fin and 3 spines and 14-15 soft rays in its anal fin. It attains a maximum total length of 70 cm (28 in), although 35 cm (14 in) is more typical, and a maximum published weight of 2.9 kg (6.4 lb).[1] This is a large species with an overall silvery colour with a wide black band or crescentic marking which runs from the nape to the base of the pectoral fin. The seventh pectoral fin ray is elongated.[6] The fins are light to dark-greyish without any clear markings. The juveniles are also silvery but have dark bands or blotches on their upper bodies.[7]

Distribution and habitat

Nemadactylus macropterus is definitely found in Australia and New Zealand. In Australia it occurs along the southern coast from Broken Bay, New South Wales to Rottnest Island, Western Australia, its range encompassing Tasmania too.[6] It is widespread in New Zealand, occurring from Cape Reinga to the seas immediately south of the Snares Islands, on the shallower areas on the Chatham Rise and off the Chatham Islands.[7] There are reports of this species from South America and islands in the southern Indian Ocean but it is thought that these may be misidentifications of similar looking congeners.[8] It is found on deep reefs in depths down to 400 m (1,300 ft), although they are known to enter large coastal bays at times.[6]

Biology

Nemadactylus macropterus has a maximum lifespan of approximately 35 years, and maturation is obtained at the age of 3-6 years.[9] They spawn from the periods of February to June.[10] The young N.macropterus are found in high density in the inner and mid shelf, while the adults reside on the outer continental shelf.[11] This species has a diet of benthic invertebrates including polychaetes, crustaceans, molluscs and echinoderms.[6] There are known regular spawning aggregations in New Zealand waters and individuals have been known to migrate up to 500 km (310 mi) from their home range to breed.[7]

References
  1. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2021). "Nemadactylus macropterus" in FishBase. June 2021 version.
  2. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Nemadactylus". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  3. Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Latridae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  4. Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara, eds. (25 February 2021). "Order Centrarchiformes: Families Centrarchidae, Elassomatidae, Eoplosidae, Sinipercidae, Aplodactylidae, Cheilodactylidae, Chironemidae, Cirrhitidae, Latridae, Percichthydiae, Dichistitidae, Girellidae, Kuhliidae, Kyphosidae, Oplegnathidae, Terapontidae, Microcanthidae, and Scorpididae". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  5. Ludt, W.B.; Burridge, C.P. & Chakrabarty, P. (2019). "A taxonomic revision of Cheilodactylidae and Latridae (Centrarchiformes: Cirrhitoidei) using morphological and genomic characters". Zootaxa. 585 (1). doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4585.1.7.
  6. Bray, D.J. (2020). "Nemadactylus macropterus". Fishes of Australia. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  7. McMillan, P.J.; Francis, M.P.; Paul, L.J.; et al. (2011). New Zealand fishes. Volume 1: A field guide to common species caught by bottom and midwater fishing. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report. Vol. 68. p. 237.
  8. Haliwell, Alexander Graham (2019). Population Genetics of New Zealand Nemadactylus macropterus (tarakihi) and Characterisation of their Mitochondrial Genome (Thesis). Victoria University of Wellington.
  9. Smolenski, A. (2003). "Lack of genetic divergence found with microsatellite DNA markers in the tarakihi Nemadactylus macropterus". New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research. 37 (2): 223–230. doi:10.1080/00288330.2003.9517160. hdl:10536/DRO/DU:30001883. S2CID 58931847 – via Science Citation Index.
  10. Bruce, B. (2001). "Influence of mesoscale oceanographic processes on larval distribution and stock structure in jackass morwong (Nemadactylus macropterus: Cheilodactylidae)". ICES Journal of Marine Science. 58 (5): 1072–1080. doi:10.1006/jmsc.2001.1099 – via Science Citation Index.
  11. Hall, N. (2010). "Life cycle characteristics of the Blue Morwong Nemadactylus valenciennesi, compared with those of other species of Cheilodactylidae". Marine and Freshwater Research. 61 (1): 104–118. doi:10.1071/MF08341 – via Science Citation Index.
  • Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2006). "Nemadactylus macropterus" in FishBase. January 2006 version.
  • Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8
  • D. A. Robertson (1978) Spawning of tarakihi (Pisces: Cheilodaetylidae) in New Zealand waters, New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 12:3, 277-286, DOI:10.1080/00288330.1978.9515754
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