Mozambique cardinalfish (Archamia mozambiquensis)

Scientific name: Archamia mozambiquensis Smith, 1961

The Mozambique cardinalfish (Archamia mozambiquensis) is a marine fish of the family Apogonidae.

Biology

Dorsal spines (total): 7; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 13 - 15. Diagnosis: Rays: dorsal VI + I,9; anal II,13-15; pectoral rays 14 (rarely 15). Gill rakers 5-6 + 16-18. Lateral-line scales 25+3-4. Median predorsal scales 5-6. Body depth 2.5-2.7 in SL; body width 2.2-2.6 in body depth; eye diameter 2.8-3.2 in head length; first dorsal spine 2.5-3.25 in second spine; second dorsal spine 2.05-2.8, and third dorsal spine 2.1-2.9 in head length; spine of second dorsal fin 2.2-2.5, and second anal spine 2.4-3.1 in head length; pelvic-fin length 4.6-5.1 and caudal-peduncle length 4.1-5.1 in SL; distance from insertion of pelvic spine to anal-fin origin 3.9-5.8 in SL. Posterior preopercular edge serrate on lower half; ventral edge serrate on posterior half. Scaly sheath along anal-fin base well developed.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Archamia mozambiquensis
Family
Apogonidae (Cardinalfishes)
Order
Perciformes (Perch-like fish)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
8.9
Depth range
1–20 m (3–66 ft)
Environment
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 1 - 20 m
Climate
Tropical
Distribution
Western Indian Ocean: eastern coast of Africa and its associated islands, from Kenya to KwaZulu-Natal. Reported as likely at Seychelles but Randall and van Egmond 1994 believe otherwise.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Last updated