Dottyback

Dottybacks
Splendid Dottyback Manonichthys splendens
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Perciformes
Family:	Pseudochromidae
Subfamilies
Anisochrominae Congrogadinae Pseudochrominae Pseudoplesiopinae

The dottybacks are a family, Pseudochromidae, of fishes in the order Perciformes. Around 100 species belong to this family.

They are found in the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific, where they inhabit coral reefs. They are brightly coloured fish, often showing striking sexual dimorphism. They are generally small, mostly less than 10 cm (3.9 in) in length, and some less than 2 cm (0.79 in). They are distinguished from other families by the presence of three or less spines in the dorsal fin and an incomplete lateral line organ.^[1]

Genera

Family Pseudochromidae

• Subfamily Anisochrominae
  • Anisochromis
• Subfamily Congrogadinae - eel blennies
  • Blennodesmus
  • Congrogadus
  • Halidesmus
  • Halimuraena
  • Halimuraenoides
  • Haliophis
  • Natalichthys
  • Rusichthys
• Subfamily Pseudochrominae
  • Assiculoides
  • Assiculus
  • Cypho
  • Labracinus
  • Manonichthys
  • Ogilbyina
  • Oxycercichthys
  • Pholidochromis
  • Pictichromis
  • Pseudochromis
• Subfamily Pseudoplesiopinae
  • Amsichthys
  • Chlidichthys
  • Lubbockichthys
  • Pectinochromis
  • Pseudoplesiops

Timeline

References

1. Johnson, G.D. & Gill, A.C. (1998). Paxton, J.R. & Eschmeyer, W.N., ed. Encyclopedia of Fishes. San Diego: Academic Press. p. 185. ISBN 0-12-547665-5.

• Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2006). "Pseudochromidae" in FishBase. January 2006 version.