''Caesio'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

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 h ...

, fusiliers belonging to the

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

Caesionidae Caesionidae, the fusiliers, are a family of marine ray-finned fishes in the order Perciformes. The family includes about 23 species. They are related to the snappers, but adapted for feeding on plankton, rather than on larger prey. They are fou ...

. They are native to the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...

and the western

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

, although one species has invaded the eastern Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal by

Lessepsian migration The Lessepsian migration (also called Erythrean invasion) is the migration of marine species across the Suez Canal, usually from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and more rarely in the opposite direction. When the canal was completed in 18 ...

Taxonomy

''Caesio'' was created in 1801 by the French naturalist Bernard Germain de Lacépède when he described ''Caesio caerilaurea''. In 1876 the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

ichthyologist

Pieter Bleeker Pieter Bleeker (10 July 1819 – 24 January 1878) was a Dutch medical doctor, ichthyologist, and herpetologist. He was famous for the ''Atlas Ichthyologique des Indes Orientales Néêrlandaises'', his monumental work on the fishes of East Asia ...

designated ''C. caerulaurea'' as the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specime ...

of the genus ''Caesio''. The genus name, ''Caesio'', means ”blue”.

Species

Currently, 9 species in this genus are recognized, organised into three subgenera according to some authorities: * Subgenus ''Caesio'' ** '' Caesio caerulaurea'' Lacépède, 1801 – blue and gold fusilier ** ''

Caesio striata ''Caesio'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish, fusiliers belonging to the family Caesionidae. They are native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean, although one species has invaded the eastern Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Ca ...

'' Rüppell, 1830 – striated fusilier ** '' Caesio varilineata'' K. E. Carpenter, 1987 – variable-lined fusilier ** ''

Caesio xanthalytos ''Caesio'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish, fusiliers belonging to the family Caesionidae. They are native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean, although one species has invaded the eastern Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Ca ...

'' Holleman, Connell & K. E. Carpenter, 2013 * Subgenus ''Flavicaesio'' ** ''

Caesio suevica ''Caesio suevica'' , the Suez fusilier, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a fusilier belonging to the Family (biology), family Caesionidae. It is Endemism, endemic to the Red Sea. Taxonomy ''Caesio suevica'' was first formally Species desc ...

'' Klunzinger, 1884 – Suez fusilier ** '' Caesio teres'' Seale, 1906 – yellow and blueback fusilier ** '' Caesio xanthonota'' Bleeker, 1853 – yellowback fusilier * Subgenus ''Odontonectes'' ** '' Caesio cuning'' ( Bloch, 1791) – redbelly yellowtail fusilier ** '' Caesio lunaris'' G. Cuvier, 1830 – lunar fusilier

Characteristics

''Caesio'' fusiliers have a reasonably high, fusiform and elongate body which is moderately laterally compressed. They have a continuous dorsal fin which has 10 spines, all of which are connected by membranes and have 13-16 soft rays. The anal fin has 3 spines and 10-13 soft rays. Both these fins have scales. The pectoral fins have 17 -23 rays. They may be plain or have one or more horizontal stripes and there may be black markings on the tail, typically black spots on the tips of the lobes or black lines in the middle of lobes.

Distribution and habitat

''Caesio'' fusiliers are found in coastal areas of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, including the Red Sea. One species, '' C. varilineata'' has been recorded in the eastern Mediterranean, probably having reached there through the Suez Canal as a Lessepsian migrant. They are mainly found on coral reefs.

Biology

''Caesio'' fusiliers are sociable Fishes which aggregate in schools, frequently forming mixed species schools with other fusilier species. These fish have a diet dominated by zooplankton from midwater while in their schools. They attain sexual maturity quickly and the females have high fecundity. They lay numerous small, pelagic eggs and

spawning Spawn is the eggs and sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, and the act of both sexes is called spawning. Most aquatic animals, except for aquat ...

occurs throughout much of the year. Spawning aggregations form at periods determined by lunar cycles.

Fisheries

Caesio fusiliers are of some importance to inshore fisheries. They are taken using

drive-in net A fishing net is a net used for fishing. Nets are devices made from fibers woven in a grid-like structure. Some fishing nets are also called fish traps, for example fyke nets. Fishing nets are usually meshes formed by knotting a relatively th ...

s, gili nets, traps, trawls, and handlines. The catch is sold as fresh fish or preserved as

salted fish Salted fish, such as kippered herring or dried and salted cod, is fish cured with dry salt and thus preserved for later eating. Drying or salting, either with dry salt or with brine, was the only widely available method of preserving fish u ...

. The juveniles of some species are caught to be used as bait in tuna fisheries.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2932886 Caesionidae Taxa named by Bernard Germain de Lacépède Marine fish genera Perciformes genera