The fly-specked hardyhead (''Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum'') is a species of fish in the family

Atherinidae The Old World silversides are a family, Atherinidae, of fish in the order Atheriniformes. Atherinidae are abundant and considered bony fish (teleost) that are widespread globally, living in rivers, estuaries, and coastal waters. They occur worldw ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

and widespread in the freshwater streams of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

down the east coast of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

into southern Queensland. It forms

shoals In oceanography, geomorphology, and geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material and rises from the bed of a body of water to near the surface. It o ...

in streams' shallows (both slow flowing and fast flowing). It grows up to 10 cm (usually 5–6 cm) in length.James Cook University's 'Discover Nature at JCU' webapage.
Accessed 1 March 2009 The

Australian Museum The Australian Museum is a heritage-listed museum at 1 William Street, Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. It is the oldest museum in Australia,Design 5, 2016, p.1 and the fifth oldest natural history museum in the ...

has a sample taken from the Annan River

in its

ichthyology Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish ( Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 33,400 species of fish had been described as of Octob ...

collection. The Museum describes the species as follows:Fly-specked Hardyhead entry on Australia Museum's Fish Site
Accessed 1 March 2009

"The flyspecked hardyhead has a slender body covered with black dots. This pattern gave rise to the common name. The fish is golden yellow to deep green above, changing to white below. A dusky to silver stripe runs from the snout to the
caudal peduncle 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 ...
."

"The flyspecked hardyhead eats mainly mosquito larvae and aquatic insects. It will also eat crustaceans and has been observed eating algae in aquaria. It can be easily kept in aquaria but its natural colours often fade."

Reproduction

Breeding and spawning occurs in October to February. Males gain a bright yellow or gold belly for the occasion. Females deposit large, transparent eggs onto aquatic plants. Larvae 4.8 - 6.4 mm long hatch after 13 days.

References

Craterocephalus Fish described in 1867 Taxa named by Albert Günther {{Atheriniformes-stub