Symphurus

Symphurus
Northern tonguefish (S. pusillus)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Pleuronectiformes
Family: Cynoglossidae
Genus: Symphurus
Rafinesque, 1810
Species

See text

Symphurus is a genus of tonguefishes found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. Most species mainly occur in relatively shallow water, including estuaries. Some species are also found in deeper water, including S. thermophilus that lives at hydrothermal vents (the only flatfish known from this habitat).[1][2]

Symphurus species are distinguished by merged dorsal, caudal, and anal fins, the absence of a lateral line and pectoral fins, and the presence of only one pelvic fin. They are sinistral flatfishes, meaning that as adults, their crania are asymmetrical, with both eyes on the left side. The largest species grows to about 32 cm (1 ft) long.

Species

The 75 currently recognized species in this genus are:

Spottedfin tonguefish, S. diomedeanus

References

  1. ↑ Tyler, J. (2005). Distribution, population characteristics and trophic ecology of a sulphophilic hydrothermal vent tonguefish (Pleuronectiformes: Cynoglossidae) M.Sc. Thesis. University of Victoria: Canada.
  2. ↑ Munroe, T.A. and Hashimoto, J. (2008). A new Western Pacific Tonguefish (Pleuronectiformes: Cynoglossidae): The first Pleuronectiform discovered at active Hydrothermal Vents. Zootaxa 1839: 43–59.
  3. ↑ Lee, M.-Y., Munroe, T.A. & Shao, K.-T. (2014): Description of a new cryptic, shallow-water tonguefish (Pleuronectiformes: Cynoglossidae: Symphurus) from the western North Pacific Ocean. Journal of Fish Biology, 85 (3): 563–585.
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