''Etelis'' 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 ...

Lutjanidae Lutjanidae, or snappers are a family of perciform fish, mainly marine, but with some members inhabiting estuaries, feeding in fresh water. The family includes about 113 species. Some are important food fish. One of the best known is the red snapp ...

, the snappers. They are mostly native to the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and

Pacific 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 continen ...

oceans with one species ''(E. oculatus)'' native to the western

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

Taxonomy

''Etelis'' was named by the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

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 ...

Georges Cuvier in 1830 with ''Etelis carbunculus'' as its only species and, therefore, its type species. The name of the genus was taken from

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 ...

by Cuvier, who said that Aristotle had used it for a fish he did not give a description for. The currently recognized species in this genus are: * '' Etelis boweni''

Andrews Andrews may refer to: Places Australia *Andrews, Queensland *Andrews, South Australia United States *Andrews, Florida (disambiguation), various places *Andrews, Indiana * Andrews, Nebraska *Andrews, North Carolina * Andrews, Oregon * Andrews, Sou ...

, Fernandez-Silva, Randall & H.-C. Ho, 2021 (Bowen’s snapper) * ''

Etelis carbunculus ''Etelis carbunculus'', the deep-water red snapper, ruby snapper or longtail snapper, is a species of ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is found in the Indo-Pacific region. Description ''Etelis carbunculus'' is an ...

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 ...

, 1828 (deep-water red snapper) * ''

Etelis coruscans ''Etelis'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lutjanidae, the snappers. They are mostly native to the Indian and Pacific oceans with one species ''(E. oculatus)'' native to the western Atlantic Ocean. Taxonomy ''Eteli ...

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a s ...

, 1862 (deepwater longtail red snapper) * '' Etelis oculatus'' (Valenciennes, 1828) (queen snapper) * '' Etelis radiosus'' W. D. Anderson, 1981 (pale snapper)

Characteristics

''Etelis'' snappers are medium sized Lutjanids with slender,

fusiform Fusiform means having a spindle-like shape that is wide in the middle and tapers at both ends. It is similar to the lemon-shape, but often implies a focal broadening of a structure that continues from one or both ends, such as an aneurysm on a b ...

bodies. The jaws are equipped with small, conical teeth, the outer row being the largest and they have 1 or 2 pairs of enlarged canines at their front. The vomerine teeth are placed in a v-shaped or a crescent shaped patch. The space between the eyes is flattened.They have a continuous

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin located on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates within various taxa of the animal kingdom. Many species of animals possessing dorsal fins are not particularly closely related to each other, though through conv ...

but there is a notch at the junction of the spiny part of the fin, this fin has 10 spines and 10 to 11 soft rays. 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 ...

has 3 spines and 8 soft rays. Both the dorsal and anal fins lack scales and the last ray in each fin is elongated.compared to the neighbouring ray The pectoral fins are long, just shorter than the head and contain 15 to 17 rays. The

caudal 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 ...

s are forked. These snappers are coloured in a variety of red or pink shades changing to silvery or whitish on lower flanks and abdomen.

Distribution

''Etelis'' species are found mainly in the Indian Ocean and western Pacific Ocean, with one species the

queen snapper The queen snapper (''Etelis oculatus''), also known as the night snapper or brim snapper, is a species of ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is native to the western Atlantic Ocean, and is the only species in the ge ...

(''E. oculatus'') being found in the tropical western Atlantic Ocean.

Habitat and biology

''Etelis'' snappers are found at moderate depths, between , over rock substrates. They may be solitary or found in small groups. Their diet includes fishes, squid and crustaceans.

Fisheries

''Etelis'' species are important in many areas as food fish, especially among the archipelagos of the Indian and West Pacific Oceans. These fish are fished for mainly using bottom longlines and deep handlines. They are considered to be good quality food fish and the catch is mainly sold fresh.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2213700 Etelinae Taxa named by Georges Cuvier