The flagfish (''Jordanella floridae''), also known as the American flagfish or Florida flagfish, is a

pupfish Pupfish are a group of small killifish belonging to ten genera of the family Cyprinodontidae of ray-finned fish. Pupfish are especially noted for being found in extreme and isolated situations. They are primarily found in North America, South Am ...

, a type of

killifish A killifish is any of various oviparous (egg-laying) cyprinodontiform fish (including families Aplocheilidae, Cyprinodontidae, Fundulidae, Profundulidae and Valenciidae). All together, there are 1,270 species of killifish, the biggest family ...

, from 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 ...

Cyprinodontidae which is

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 ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. It is found in the

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

trade. Its common name derives from the dominant males' body pattern, which bears some resemblance to the

Flag of the United States The national flag of the United States, United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rect ...

Description

Flagfish are small, robust fish, in length, with a truncated snout which has been compared to a bulldogs. They have rounded fins with the dorsal and

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 ...

s positioned posteriorly and adjoining 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 ...

. Females have an obvious spot on their flanks and a clear spot near the posterior end of the dorsal fin, this has an opaque white margin. The fins may be show a slight reddish colour but this comes and goes in any individual but the reason for this is unknown. The females body is mainly olive but marked with turquoise scales. The common name of the Flagfish is derived from the male due to the resemblance of its patterning to the

flag of the United States The national flag of the United States, United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rect ...

. There is a dark rectangle on the shoulder which is imagined as the blue and white stars in the corner of the US flag and there are stripes along the flanks, some of which are red and others paler, albeit greenish rather than white. The male also has a dark spot positioned at the lower posterior corner of the dark rectangle. The olive-grey colouration and pattern of nondominant males, females, and juveniles underlies the more colourful pattern of the dominant males.

Distribution

The flagfish is endemic to Florida where it is found in the Florida Peninsula south of the drainage basins of the

St. Johns River The St. Johns River ( es, Río San Juan) is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant one for commercial and recreational use. At long, it flows north and winds through or borders twelve counties. The drop in eleva ...

and

Ochlockonee River The Ochlockonee River ( ) is a fast running river, except where it has been dammed to form Lake Talquin in Florida, originating in Georgia and flowing for before terminating in Florida. Background The name is from the Hitchiti language words ...

Habitat and biology

The flagfish normally occurs in shallow, well vegetated freshwater habitats such as backwaters, marshes, canals and ditches but it has occasionally been recorded in slightly brackish water. The flagfish is listed in the

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

as the species of fish which lays the fewest eggs, a female will lay 20 eggs over a period of a few days. They have a courtship display in which the female encourages the male to chase her by nipping him. After that they face each other with the female swimming backwards, the male then backflips. After the eggs are laid the male guards them, attacking fish which stray too close. However, the male may also eat his own eggs or offspring. Other sources say that this species shows no parental care. This species is omnivorous, it is a micropredator feeding on small invertebrates and zooplankton but it will also feed on algae and other plant material. They are often used to naturally control hair algae in suitable aquariums, as they are one of the only fish to consume it in an impactful volume.

Taxonomy and name

The flagfish was described by George Brown Goode and Tarleton Hoffman Bean in 1879 with the type locality given as

Lake Monroe, Florida Lake Monroe is an unincorporated community in Seminole County, Florida, United States. Its ZIP code is 32747. Florida Action Committee, a nonprofit advocacy group for sex offenders A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abus ...

. The generic name honours the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

ichthyologist 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 Octobe ...

David Starr Jordan David Starr Jordan (January 19, 1851 – September 19, 1931) was the founding president of Stanford University, serving from 1891 to 1913. He was an ichthyologist during his research career. Prior to serving as president of Stanford Univer ...

(1851-1931). It is closely related to the

Yucatan flagfish The Yucatan flagfish (''Garmanella pulchra''), also known as the snakeskin killifish, is a species of pupfish from the family Cyprinodontidae. It is found in the coastal waters (both fresh and brackish) of the Yucatan Peninsula, in Mexico and B ...

''Garmanella pulchra'' which is sometimes also placed in the genus ''Jordanella''.

References

External links

Florida flagfish entry on Brackish FAQ

{{Taxonbar, from=Q861774 Cyprinodontidae Fauna of the Southeastern United States Freshwater fish of the Southeastern United States Fish described in 1879 Taxa named by George Brown Goode Taxa named by Tarleton Hoffman Bean Endemic fauna of Florida Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN <--- Jordanella floridae --->