''Scatophagus'' 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 ...

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 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 ...

Scatophagidae Scatophagidae, the scats are a small family of ray-finned fishes 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 ...

. 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. Species in this genus are referred as ''spotted scats''.

Taxonomy

''Scatophagus'' was first formally described as a genus in 1831 by the French

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 Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, Baron Cuvier (; 23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuvier ...

with ''Chaetodon argus'' which had been described from India by Linnaeus in 1766 later designated as the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

. The genus name is a compound of ''skatos'' meaning "dung" and ''phaga'' which means to eat, a reference to this species purported taste for human faeces.

Species

The genus ''Scatophagus'' contains two extant species: * ''

Scatophagus argus ''Scatophagus argus'', the spotted scat, butterfish, mia mia, spotted butterfish or tiger scat, is a species of fish in the scat family (biology), family Scatophagidae. It occurs in two basic color morph (zoology), morphs which are called green s ...

'' (Linnaeus, 1766) (Spotted scat) * ''

Scatophagus tetracanthus ''Scatophagus tetracanthus'', the scatty or African scat is a species of ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scatophagidae, the scats. It is found in eastern Africa and Madagascar and in New Guinea and northern Australia. Taxonomy ''Scatophag ...

'' ( Lacépède, 1802) (African scat)

Extinct species

The fossil ''Eoscatophagus frontalis'' Tyler & Sorbini, 1999 (syn. ''Scatophagus frontalis'' Agassiz, 1839) is from the Middle Eocene of the North Italian

Monte Bolca Monte Bolca is a lagerstätte near Verona, Italy that was one of the first fossil sites with high quality preservation known to Europeans, and is still an important source of fossils from the Eocene. Geology Monte Bolca was uplifted from the T ...

formation that originated from sediments of the Tethys.Karl Albert Frickhinger: Fossilien Atlas Fische, Mergus-Verlag, Melle, 1999, Scatophagus frontalis

Characteristics

''Scatophagus'' species have highly compressed, rectangular 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 ...

has 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. Therer 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 ''S. tetracanthus'' up to for '' S. argus''.

Distribution and habitat

''Scatophagus'' fishes are found in the Indo-Pacific from the coast of East Africa east into the western Pacific Ocean north to Japan, south to Australia and east to the

Society Islands The Society Islands (french: Îles de la Société, officially ''Archipel de la Société;'' ty, Tōtaiete mā) are an archipelago located in the South Pacific Ocean. Politically, they are part of French Polynesia, an overseas country of the F ...

. One species, ''S.argus'', has become an established

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...

off Malta and has been recorded occasionally off

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 ...

. They are found in sheltered habitats in coastal areas, including in brackish water and even into freshwater rivers.

Biology

''Scatophagus'' fishes feed on a diverse diet which includes small invertebrates, algae, detritus and refuse. They are venomous, a gland on the lateral line produces venom and a groove takes this onto the spines. If invenomated the wound is painful and may ache for a number of hours.

Utilisation

''Scatophagus'' scats are caught using

gill net Gillnetting is a fishing method that uses gillnets: vertical panels of netting that hang from a line with regularly spaced floaters that hold the line on the surface of the water. The floats are sometimes called "corks" and the line with corks is ...

s and

trap A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research. Trap or TRAP may also refer to: Art and entertainment Films and television * ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...

s and may be marketed fresh or salted. They feature in the live fish market in Hong Kong and are used in

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...

. They also appear 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.

References

External links

* * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q1285940 Taxa named by Georges Cuvier Perciformes genera