Theflying gurnardsare afamily,Dactylopteridae,ofmarinefishnotable for their greatly enlargedpectoral fins.As they cannot literally fly or glide in the air (likeflying fish), an alternative name preferred by some authors ishelmet gurnards.[2]They have been regarded as the only family in the suborderDactylopteroideiof theScorpaeniformesbut more recent molecular classifications put them in the orderSyngnathiformes,in the superfamilyCentriscoidea.[3]
| Flying gurnards | |
|---|---|
| |
| Dactylopterus volitans | |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Syngnathiformes |
| Suborder: | Aulostomoidei |
| Superfamily: | Centriscoidea |
| Family: | Dactylopteridae Gill,1861[1] |
| Genera | |
They have been observed to "walk" along sandy sea floors while looking forcrustaceans,other smallinvertebratesand small fish by using their pelvic fins. Like the true gurnards (sea robins), to which they may be related, they possess a swim bladder with two lobes and a "drumming muscle" that can beat against the swim bladder to produce sounds. They have heavy, protective scales and the undersides of their huge pectoral fins are brightly coloured, perhaps to startle predators.[2]
Most species are in theIndo-PacificgenusDactyloptena,but the single member ofDactylopterusis from warmer parts of the Atlantic. The adults live on the sea bottom, but many species have an extendedlarvalstage, which floats freely in the oceans.[2]
Taxonomy
editMorphological traits uniting the flying gurnards (Dactylopteridae) and theSyngnathiformeshave long been noted. Most authors placed them with theScorpaeniformes,butDNAsequence data quite consistently support the view that the latter areparaphyleticwith theGasterosteiformessensu lato.Flying gurnards are particularly close to theAulostomidae(trumpetfish) andFistulariidae(cornetfish), and would have to be included with these.[4]
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D. orientalis -
D. orientalis -
D. orientalis -
See also
editReferences
edit- ^Bailly N, ed. (2017)."Dactylopteridae Gill, 1861".FishBase.World Register of Marine Species.Retrieved14 June2018.
- ^abcEschmeyer, William N. (1998). Paxton, J.R.; Eschmeyer, W.N. (eds.).Encyclopedia of Fishes.San Diego: Academic Press. p. 177.ISBN0-12-547665-5.
- ^Nelson, JS; Grande, TC & Wilson, MVH (2016)."Classification of fishes from Fishes of the World 5th Edition"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 13 March 2020.Retrieved14 June2018.
- ^Kawahara, Ryouka; Masaki Miya; Kohji Mabuchi; Sébastien Lavoué; Jun G. Inoue; Takashi P. Satoh; Akira Kawaguchi; Mutsumi Nishida (2008). "Interrelationships of the 11 gasterosteiform families (sticklebacks, pipefishes, and their relatives): A new perspective based on whole mitogenome sequences from 75 higher teleosts".Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.46(1): 224–236.doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2007.07.009.ISSN1055-7903.PMID17709262.
External links
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