Alepes

Lore & Background

Alepes was first created in 1839 by the English naturalist William Swainson, who initially proposed it as a subgenus of Trachinus, a name he had used for a newly described species, Trachinus melanoptera. However, Trachinus was invalid because it was already in use for a genus of weevers, making Alepes melanoptera the type species. The other species now placed in Alepes were transferred from other, often distantly related genera, and many have numerous junior synonyms. The name 'Alepes' comes from the Greek word alepis, meaning 'without scales'.

The species in Alepes are all relatively small fish, with the largest, A. vari, reaching 56 cm, while others are more often encountered below 20 cm. They have strongly compressed, ovate to oblong bodies, with two dorsal fins, the first consisting of weak spines and the second of a single spine followed by soft rays.

The anal fin has two detached spines anterior to the main section. Their lateral lines have a moderate to strong anterior curve, with scutes on the straight section. Coloration is blue-green-grey above, fading to silvery white below; only A. kleinni has bands or markings.

These fish are predators, taking crustaceans such as copepods, decapods, prawns, and shrimp, as well as small fish. At least one species shows a change in feeding intensity over the year. Reproduction is mostly unstudied, except for A. kleinii, which spawns in a single event over a few months, releasing small transparent, pelagic eggs. A single fossil species, Alepes pin, has been identified from the Lower Miocene in eastern Crimean Oblast, an area once part of the Indian Ocean.