''Bembras'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of marine

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or hor ...

belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Bembridae Bembridae, the deep-water flatheads, are a family of bottom-dwelling ray-finned fishes. They are found in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans. Taxonomy Bembridae was first proposed as a family in 1873 by the German zoologist Johann Jakob Kaup ...

, the deepwater flatheads. These fishes are found in the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean.

Taxonomy

''Bembras'' was first proposed as a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus in 1829 by the French

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

George Cuvier Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, Baron Cuvier (; 23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuvier was a major figure in nat ...

when he described ''Bembras japonica'' from Japan. Cuvier did not explain the

etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...

of ''Bembras'', however, it is thought that it may come from an ancient Greek word for some sort of small fish, such as

anchovy An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water. More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...

sprat Sprat is the common name applied to a group of forage fish belonging to the genus ''Sprattus'' in the family Clupeidae. The term also is applied to a number of other small sprat-like forage fish (''Clupeoides'', ''Clupeonella'', '' Corica'', ' ...

smelt Smelt may refer to: * Smelting, chemical process * The common name of various fish: ** Smelt (fish), a family of small fish, Osmeridae ** Australian smelt in the family Retropinnidae and species ''Retropinna semoni'' ** Big-scale sand smelt ''At ...

. which at least dates as far back as

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...

. Cuvier applied this type of name to other genera he put forward, such as ''

Synodontis ''Synodontis'' is the largest genus of mochokid catfishes. It is the biggest genus within the 10 genera and 190 different species in the family Mochokidae. ''Synodontis'' has over 131 different species within the genus. ''Synodontis'' are also k ...

'', ''

Salanx ''Salanx'' is a genus of Salangidae, icefishes native to Eastern Asia, ranging from Korea and Japan, through China to Vietnam. They are small fish, up to in standard length. Species There are currently five recognized species in this genus: * ...

'' or ''

Premnas ''Premnas biaculeatus'', commonly known as spine-cheeked anemonefish or the maroon clownfish, is a species of anemonefish found in the Indo-Pacific from western Indonesia to Taiwan and the Great Barrier Reef.Lieske, E., and R. Myers. 1999. ''C ...

''.

Species

There are currently seven recognized species in this genus: * '' Bembras adenensis'' Imamura & L. W. Knapp, 1997 * '' Bembras andamanensis'' Imamura, Psomadakis &

Thein Thein is a name found in several cultures. Notable people with this name include: Burmese name *Aung Min Thein (1961–2007), film director and artist * Thein Han (basketball) (born 1998), basketball player *Hla Thein (born 1944), athlete * Hma ...

, 2018 * '' Bembras japonica''

G. Cuvier Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, Baron Cuvier (; 23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuvier was a major figure in nat ...

, 1829 * '' Bembras leslieknappi'' Imamura, Psomadakis & Thein, 2018 * '' Bembras longipinnis'' Imamura & L. W. Knapp, 1998 (Longfin flathead) * '' Bembras macrolepis'' Imamura, 1998 (Bigscale flathead) * ''

Bembras megacephala ''Bembras'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Bembridae, the deepwater flatheads. These fishes are found in the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean. Taxonomy ''Bembras'' was first proposed as a monotypic genus i ...

'' Imamura & L. W. Knapp, 1998 (Greenspotted flathead)

Characteristics

''Bembras'' deepwater flatheads are differentiated from other Bembrid genera by having a lack of spines in the

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

, a terminal lower jaw which does not protrude beyond the upper jaw and having the maxillae being relatively wide to its rear. They have between 28 and 32 scales in the

lateral line The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelial ...

and between 21 and 30 fin rays in each of the

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

s. The head is large at around 40% of the

standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology. Overall length * Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish m ...

. The species within ''Bembras'' are all around the same size with the largest being ''B. japonica'' which has a maximum published

of .

Distribution and habitat

''Bembras'' deepwater flatheads are found in the Indo-Pacific region from the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden ( ar, خليج عدن, so, Gacanka Cadmeed 𐒅𐒖𐒐𐒕𐒌 𐒋𐒖𐒆𐒗𐒒) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Channe ...

to the Western Pacific Ocean north as far as Japan and south to Australia.These are

demersal fish Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They occ ...

es of the

continental shelf A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an island ...

at depths between .

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1592777 Bembridae Taxa named by Georges Cuvier