''Parapercis schauinslandii'', commonly known as redspotted sandperch, lyretail grubfish or flagfin weever, is a species of marine fish native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is a member of the

sandperch The sandperches are a family, Pinguipedidae, of fishes in the percomorph order Trachiniformes. Sandperches are benthic fish which normally occur over sand or rubble substrates in shallow seas. They are found off the coasts of South America, So ...

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 ...

Pinguipedidae The sandperches are a family, Pinguipedidae, of fishes in the percomorph order Trachiniformes. Sandperches are benthic fish which normally occur over sand or rubble substrates in shallow seas. They are found off the coasts of South America, ...

, form the percomorph order

Trachiniformes Trachiniformes is an order of percomorph bony fish which is traditionally the suborder Trachinoidei of the Perciformes. However, the classification is also considered as a polyphyly by molecular phylogenies. Trachinidae itself is eventually ...

. ''Parapercis snyderi'' is a strikingly coloured fish which has black or reddish to dark brown blotches on its dorsal sides, which alternate with reddish bars on the lower flanks. It has a spiny

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 ...

which is black near its base and is a deep reddish cour towards the tip. There is a second sot rayed dorsal fin with a row of dark spots. The base of the

pectoral 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 ...

has two thin bright red bars and there are two dark spots on base of 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 ...

. The colour of this species varies geographically, with specimens from the Indian Ocean showing a lined pattern as opposed to a barred pattern. This species occurs in open areas with sandy and rubble substrates on the deeper seaward and coastal slopes and on deep sandy reef flats, at depths between and . The adults frequently swim up from the sea bed to catch prey. They mainly feed on

zooplankton Zooplankton are the animal component of the planktonic community ("zoo" comes from the Greek word for ''animal''). Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents, and consequently drift or are carried along by ...

, and are often recorded feeding above the seabed with other fish species, or in small single species shoals of 10–50 fish. They are distributed throughout the

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

from the coast of East Africa to

Pitcairn Island Pitcairn Island is the only inhabited island of the Pitcairn Islands, of which many inhabitants are descendants of mutineers of HMS ''Bounty''. Geography The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other ...

, as far north as Japan and as far south as the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

. The specific name honours the German

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 ...

and director of the Ubersee-Museum, Bremen,

Hugo Schauinsland Hugo Hermann Schauinsland (30 May 1857 – 5 June 1937) was a German zoologist born in Rittergut Dedawe, Kreis Labiau, East Prussia. He studied natural sciences at the University of Geneva and zoology at the University of Königsberg, obtaining ...

(1857–1937) who collected in New Zealand in 1896–1897. This species is found in the aquarium trade.

References

External links

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''Parapercis schauinslandii'' @ fishesofaustralia.net.au
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2049137 Pinguipedidae Fish of the Indian Ocean Marine fish of East Africa Fish of Thailand Marine fish of Southeast Asia Taxa named by Franz Steindachner Fish described in 1900