Fish ID of 3 PLEASE

seank

seank

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@Lord_Blackadder @Achilles or anyone on the forum not watching rugby... Need id of these following fish as well as reefsafe or not...... Need to place back if not...

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3rd reminds me of a squirrel fish
 
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Subphylum:
Vertebrata Class: Actinopterygii* Perciformes* Apogonidae Apogoninae
Scientific name:*Apogon kallopterus*
Common name: Irridescent Cardinal fish
Hawaiian name: *‘Upapalu
The iridescent cardinal fish is a wide-ranging species that lives on reefs from the Red Sea in the west to Easter Island in the eastern Pacific, and in latitude from Hawaii to New Zealand.
This strictly nocturnal fish wears the characteristic red uniform of night hunters.
It is equipped with large, light-gathering eyes. It commonly occurs around patch reefs in lagoons and on seaward reefs to a depth of around 150 feet.
During the day it hovers in the shelter of caves, crevices and under overhangs.

An hour or so after darkness they venture out to forage over the reef for small crustaceans (primarily, benthic creatures such as small shrimps, crabs as well as tiny planktonic crustaceans).
Cardinal fishes frequently form pairs during the breeding season and the males brood the eggs and young in their mouths. During the course of the season the males may tend many successive broods.
Unable to feed properly with mouths full of eggs or young the male’s condition tends to deteriorate over time.

It transpires that, in some species at least, the females produce additional eggs a portion of which the males may consume to make up for their metabolic losses.
 
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Ok, third one seems to be
Apogon multitaeniatus , Smallscale Cardinal fish.



Thanks for all the help Guys and Gals :p :whistling:



Now to get the right ID on the first one
 
Could it be something like this and the streaks under eye becomes more pronounced, the older it gets...? Or nowhere near it...? I'm thinking it's juvi as other pics as adults looks different...so I'm thinking maybe you have juvi..? ...although that looks almost grown up...:p
1234_wCasMMfmeh.jpg

http://www.reeflex.net/tiere/1825_Apogon_moluccensis.htm
 
@Lord_Blackadder , am I right by saying that the first and second fish are the same??? I found Apogon kallopterus pics on Fish Base as well as Wet Web Media of the same name, but one with a stripe, and one without???
 
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seank said:
To Recap then, please Correct if I am wrong:


Apogon kallopterus - Iridescent Cardinalfish


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Apogon kallopterus - Iridescent Cardinalfish

20121124_175505.jpg




Apogon multitaeniatus - Smallscale Cardinal Fish

20121124_175316.jpg
Click to expand...

I am quite sure I have nailed it, but still not 200% on the first one as it does not have the lateral stripes
 
I think you're correct. First one looks like a big A. kallopterus. Colours are duller in large specimens than small ones. Second is definitely A. kallopterus. Still has the iridescence though.

Third one is A. multitaeniatus, which is a species I haven't seen here before. Pretty interesting catch. Gets quite huge by cardinal standards.
 
I agree on the third one, never seen them here before, but the interesting thing is, we caught 4 of them, but only kept one... Another fish I have never seen here before, is the crown squirrel (see my tank thread), yet we caught 5, i kept 2 and released the rest....
Another thing, the first pic fish.... It looks completely different in body shape and color once introduced in the tank. I am still contemplating whether it is in fact of the same specie
 
Were you fishing at night or at dusk? Both families of fish are nocturnal and are usually in caves during the day.

Hmm, maybe get a pic of the first cardinal? Will be a lot easier to ID without stress colours and underwater. Cardinals can be a pain to ID...many similar species and quite a lot found in SA.

The squirrels are always very common around Durban if you poke your head under ledges and in holes. Very pretty fish, but I haven't kept them before because they're nocturnal. I often catch them accidentally when chasing other fish out of holes. If you're into cardinals then you'll probably catch some of these too if you use a very small hook at night:

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A. semiornatus. Common but very secretive during the day. Small little guys...biggest I've seen is about 5-6cm.
 
Irony is we dove during daytime and caught them. Will try and take pics, but for now they still in hiding. Love the A. SEMIORNATUS??If ever you do get one, keep me in mind....
 
As a matter of interest, the squirrels do come out during daytime once accustomed to the tank and surroundings.... Broder had the same and he can vouch for it...
 
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