''Datnioides'' 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 fish known commonly as

tigerfish Tigerfish can refer to fish from various families, and derives from official and colloquial associations of these with the tiger (''Panthera tigris''). However, the primary species designated by the name "tigerfish" are African and belong to the ...

tiger perch Grunters or tigerperches are ray-finned fishes in the family Terapontidae (also spelled Teraponidae, Theraponidae or Therapontidae). This family is part of the superfamily Percoidea of the order Perciformes. Characteristics The Terapontidae is ...

or freshwater tripletails, but all of these common names are also used for other families. It is the only genus in the family Datnioididae. These fish are found in fresh and brackish waters of rivers,

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

and coastal areas in

South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

and

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

, and

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

. Some researchers suggest that this family is related to the tripletails, family

Lobotidae ''Lobotes'' is a genus of perciform fishes known as the tripletails native to subtropical and tropical waters in all oceans. This is the sole genus in the family Lobotidae. Species The currently recognized species in this genus are: * '' Lobote ...

, while others do not find enough evidence to make the suggestion. The two families share an apparently unique mode of tooth replacement, a trait which might be a

synapomorphy In phylogenetics, an apomorphy (or derived trait) is a novel character or character state that has evolved from its ancestral form (or plesiomorphy). A synapomorphy is an apomorphy shared by two or more taxa and is therefore hypothesized to have ...

.Hilton, E. J. & W. E. Bemis. (2005)
Grouped tooth replacement in the oral jaws of the tripletail, ''Lobotes surinamensis'' (Perciformes: Lobotidae), with a discussion of its proposed relationship to ''Datnioides''.
''Copeia'' 2005(3), 665-72.

Characteristics

Datnioides have a total of 24 vertebrae. The dorsal fin has a hard-rayed portion with 12 fin rays, and a soft-rayed portion with 15 to 16 fin rays. Along with the anal fin, which sits towards the rear of the fish, and the round caudal fin, these fins give the appearance of three caudal fins. The ploughshare bone and palatine bone in Datnioides fish are toothless. There are five species of Datnioides that can grow to be 30 to 45 centimeters in length. These fish are predatory and feed on small fish.

Systematics

The Dutch ichthyologist Pieter Bleeker first introduced the genus Datnioides in 1853. In most classifications, these fish are placed in their own family, called Datnioididae. The genera Lobotes and Hapalogenys, which was formerly often placed in the family Haemulidae, are closely related to Datnioides. In the standard work on fish systematics, "Fishes of the World" by Joseph S. Nelson, Datnioides and Lobotes are placed in the family Lobotidae, which was introduced by U.S. ichthyologist Theodore Nicholas Gill in 1861. Gill also introduced the genus Datnioides in 1861.

Species

The currently recognized

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

in this genus are: * ''

Datnioides campbelli ''Datnioides campbelli'', the New Guinea tiger perch, New Guinea tigerfish or Campbell's tigerfish, is a species of datnioidid fish that is native to both fresh and brackish waters in rivers, swamps and tidal creeks in southern New Guinea, rang ...

'' Whitley, 1939 – New Guinea tiger perch * ''

Datnioides microlepis ''Datnioides microlepis'', also known as the Indonesian tiger perch, Indo datmoid, Indonesian tigerfish, or finescale tigerfish, is a species of freshwater fish endemic to the Malay Peninsula and Indonesia ( Sumatra and Kalimantan). Previous re ...

Bleeker Bleeker is a Dutch occupational surname. Bleeker is an old spelling of ''(linnen)bleker'' ("linen bleacher").Datnioides polota ''Datnioides polota'', commonly known as the silver tigerfish or four-banded tiger perch, is a species of datnioidid fish native to brackish and fresh waters near the coast like mangrove, lagoons, estuaries and lower parts of rivers from northe ...

'' ( F. Hamilton, 1822) – silver tigerfish * ''

Datnioides pulcher The Siamese tigerfish (''Datnioides pulcher''), also known as the Siamese tiger perch, is a critically endangered Asian fish native to the Chao Phraya, Mae Klong and Mekong basins. It has vertical yellow and black stripes running the length of i ...

'' (

Kottelat Maurice Kottelat (born 16 July 1957 in Delémont, SwitzerlandC ...

, 1998) – Siamese tiger perch, Siamese tigerfish * ''

Datnioides undecimradiatus ''Datnioides undecimradiatus'', commonly known as the Mekong tiger perch is a freshwater fish native to the Mekong basin in Indochina. It is considered to be the smallest ''Datnioides''. This species looks similar to '' D. pulcher'' but has a sm ...

'' ( T. R. Roberts & Kottelat, 1994) – Mekong tiger perch

References

External links

Secrets of the Datnoids Tigerfish.
datnoidstigerfish.org Perciformes genera Percoidei {{Perciformes-stub