The tentacled flathead (''Papilloculiceps longiceps''), also known as the Indian Ocean crocodilefish, Madagascar flathead or longhead flathead, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of marine

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 h ...

belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Platycephalidae, the flatheads. This species is in the western Indian Ocean, including the

Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...

and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

, having invaded as a Lessepsian migrant through the Suez Canal. It is the only species in the monotypic genus ''Papilloculiceps''.

Taxonomy

The tentacled flathead was first formally described as ''Platycephalus longiceps'' by the French zoologist Georges Cuvier in 1829 from specimens collected by Ehrenberg at Massawa in Eritrea. In 1873 the French zoologist Henri Émile Sauvage described a new species ''Platycephalus grandidieri'' from Madagascar and in 1956 the American zoologist Henry Weed Fowler and the Israeli ichthyologist Heinz Steinitz proposed a new monotypic genus, ''Papilloculiceps'', with Sauvage's ''Platycephalus grandidieri'' as its

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 specime ...

. ''P. grandidieri'' is now considered to be a junior synonym of Cuvier's ''P. longiceps''. This genus is classified within the family Playtcephalidae, the flatheads which the 5th edition of '' Fishes of the World'' classifies within the suborder

Platycephaloidei Platycephaloidei is a suborder of ray-finned fishes, part of the order Scorpaeniformes, and includes the flatheads, ghost flatheads and sea robins. Taxonomy Platycephaloidei was first recognised and named as a taxonomic grouping in 1943 by the ...

in the order

Scorpaeniformes The Scorpaeniformes are a diverse order of ray-finned fish, including the lionfishes and sculpins, but have also been called the Scleroparei. It is one of the five largest orders of bony fishes by number of species, with over 1,320. They are ...

Etymology

The genus name ''Papilloculiceps''is a combination of ''papilla'', meaning "nipple", and ''oculus'', which means "eye", a reference to the small and inconspicuous flattened papilla on the upper surface of the eyeball this species with ''ceps'', which means "head" suffixed The specific name means "long head" and may refer to the head of this fish being similar to that of a crocodile's.

Description

The tentacled flathead has an elongate body with a depressed head with 5 prominent nuchal spines. The ridges on the preoperculum and operculum are smaller dorsally than they are ventrally. There is a spine on the rear of the suborbital ridge which ends with a small spine. There are small spines on the preoperculum. The supraorbital is smooth with a tiny terminal spine, there is one preocular and two parietal spines. The eyes have notable papillae on their upper surfaces. The first

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 c ...

has 9 spines and the second dorsal fin and the anal fin each have 11 soft rays. The maximum published

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 ...

for this species is , although is more typical. The body is mottled brownish or greenish dorsally, whitish ventrally. There are 3 or 4 dark bands on 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 ...

and the other fins are marked with large, dark blotches.

Distribution and habitat

The tentacled flathead is found in the western Indian Ocean from northern KwaZulu-Natal and Madagascar to the northern Red Sea. A single record was reported in the Mediterranean Sea off Israel in 1986.Atlas of Exotic Fishes in the Mediterranean Sea (Papilloculiceps longiceps). 2nd Edition. 2021. 366p. CIESM Publishers, Paris, Monaco.https://ciesm.org/atlas/fishes_2nd_edition/Papilloculiceps_longiceps.pdf This species occurs near coral reefs on sand or rubble substrates at depths between .

Biology

The tentacled flathead is a well camouflaged,

ambush predator Ambush predators or sit-and-wait predators are carnivorous animals that capture or trap prey via stealth, luring or by (typically instinctive) strategies utilizing an element of surprise. Unlike pursuit predators, who chase to capture prey ...

of fish and crustaceans.

Gallery

Pez cocodrilo (Papilloculiceps longiceps), parque nacional Ras Muhammad, Egipto, 2022-03-26, DD 147.jpg, Crocodile fish at 20m Ras Muhammad,

Crocodilefish2.jpg, ''Papilloculiceps longiceps'' and '' Cymbacephalus beauforti'' are the two species of the family Platycephalidae which resemble crocodiles most Image:Papilloculiceps longiceps 2 by Marek Jakubowski.jpg, Detail of

lappets A lappet is a decorative flap, fold or hanging part of a headdress or garment. Lappets were a feature of women's headgear until the early twentieth century, and are still a feature of religious garments. Examples of lappets are to be found on the ...

over eyes Image:Papilloculiceps longiceps by Jacek Madejski.jpg, True colouration

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2124700 Platycephalidae Fish of the Red Sea Monotypic fish genera Fish described in 1829 Taxa named by Georges Cuvier