Scatophagidae, the scats are a small
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 ...
of
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 ...
es in the order
Perciformes
Perciformes (), also called the Percomorpha or Acanthopteri, is an order or superorder of ray-finned fish. If considered a single order, they are the most numerous order of vertebrates, containing about 41% of all bony fish. Perciformes means ...
. They are found in 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 ...
region but one species has been introduced elsewhere.
Taxonomy
Scatophagidae was first formally described as a family in 1883 by the American ichthyologist Theodore Nicholas Gill.
[ They are classified in the superfamily Siganiodea, along with the ]rabbitfish
Rabbitfishes or spinefoots are perciform fishes in the family Siganidae. The 29 species are in a single genus, ''Siganus''. In some now obsolete classifications, the species having prominent face stripes—colloquially called foxfaces– ...
es of the family Siganidae
Rabbitfishes or spinefoots are perciform fishes in the family Siganidae. The 29 species are in a single genus, ''Siganus''. In some now obsolete classifications, the species having prominent face stripes—colloquially called foxfaces– ...
, within the suborder
Order ( la, ordo) is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and ...
Percoidei
Percoidei is one of 3 suborders of bony fishes in the order Perciformes. Many commercially harvested fish species are considered to be contained in this suborder, including the snappers, groupers, basses, goatfishes and perches.
Divisions
The ...
in the 5th edition of ''Fishes of the World
''Fishes of the World'' by the American ichthyologist Joseph S. Nelson (1937–2011) is a standard reference for fish systematics. Now in its fifth edition (2016), the work is a comprehensive overview of the diversity and classification of the ...
''. Other workers have classified them with the surgeonfish
Acanthuridae are the family of surgeonfishes, tangs, and unicornfishes. The family includes about 86 extant species of marine fish living in tropical seas, usually around coral reefs. Many of the species are brightly colored and popular in ...
es in the order Acanthuriformes
Acanthuriformes is an order of ray-finned fishes, part of the Percomorpha clade. Some authorities place the fishes in the order within the Acanthuriformes in the suborders Acanthuroidea and Percoidea of the order Perciformes.
Classification
The ...
or as ''incertae sedis
' () or ''problematica'' is a term used for a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...
'' within the series Eupercaria
Percomorpha () is a large clade of ray-finned fish that includes the Scombroidei, tuna, Syngnathiformes, seahorses, gobies, Cichlidae, cichlids, flatfish, Labridae, wrasse, Perciformes, perches, Lophiiformes, anglerfish, and Tetraodontiformes, pu ...
. The name of the family comes from its type genus
In biological taxonomy, the type genus is the genus which defines a biological family and the root of the family name.
Zoological nomenclature
According to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, "The name-bearing type of a nominal f ...
''Scatophagus'' and this is a compound of ''skatos'' meaning "dung" and ''phaga'' which means to eat, a reference to this species purported taste for human faeces.
Genera
There are two genera classified within the Scatophagidae, each containing two extant species:
* ''Scatophagus
''Scatophagus'' is a genus of ray-finned fishes belonging to the Family (biology), family Scatophagidae. They are found in the Indo-Pacific region. Species in this genus are referred as ''spotted scats''.
Taxonomy
''Scatophagus'' was first forma ...
'' 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 ...
, 1831
* '' Selenotoca'' Myers
Myers as a surname has several possible origins, e.g. Old French ("physician"), Old English ("mayor"), and Old Norse ("marsh").
People
*Abram F. Myers (born 1889), chair of the Federal Trade Commission and later general counsel and board chai ...
, 1936
Characteristics
Scatophagidae fishes, the scats, have highly compressed, oblong bodies. The dorsal profile of the head rises steeply to the nape, they have a rounded snout, as is the space between the eyes. The small mouth is horizontal, and cannot be protruded, and has several rows of small bristle like teeth on the jaws teeth in several rows. There are no teeth on the roof of the mouth. The 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 ...
have 11-12 robust spines and 16-18 soft rays, the first spine lies flat and there is a deep incision between the spiny and soft rayed parts of the fin. 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 4 robust spines and 13-16 soft rays and the relatively small 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 ...
s have 16-17 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 ...
may be truncate or weakly emarginate. although it is rounded in juveniles. The head and the body are covered with tiny ctenoid
A fish scale is a small rigid plate that grows out of the skin of a fish. The skin of most jawed fishes is covered with these protective scales, which can also provide effective camouflage through the use of reflection and colouration, as ...
scales and these reach the soft rayed parts of the dorsal and anal fins. There are no spines or serrations on the opercular bones. They are silvery or greenish in colour marked with darker spots or bars. The scats vary in maximum total length
Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology.
Overall length
* Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish ...
from for '' Selenotoca papuensis'' up to for '' Selenotoca multifasciata''.[
]
Distribution and habitat
Scatophagidae is native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans from the eastern coast of Africa into the western Pacific.[ The spotted scat (''Scatophagus argus'') has been introduced to Malta, where it has become established, and it has been recorded from Florida.] Scats are found in harbours, brackish estuaries, and the lower reaches of freshwater streams.[
]
Biology
Scatophagidae fishes normally occur in schools and they feed during the day on a variety of benthic invertebrates, bottom detritus
In biology, detritus () is dead particulate organic material, as distinguished from dissolved organic material. Detritus typically includes the bodies or fragments of bodies of dead organisms, and fecal material. Detritus typically hosts commun ...
, algae and refuse.[
]
Utilisation
Scatophagidae fishes are too small to be of interest to commercial fisheries as food, they are caught using gill nets and fish traps.[ They appear in the aquarium trade.]
References
*
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q585021
Perciformes families
Extant Eocene first appearances