Siganus punctatissimus
A venomous rabbitfish with tiny pale spots and a forked tail.
The peppered spinefoot, or finespotted rabbitfish (Siganus punctatissimus), is a marine ray-finned fish in the family Siganidae. It is found in the Indo-West Pacific region.
American ichthyologists Henry Weed Fowler and Barton Appler Bean first described this species in 1929, based on a specimen from Masinloc Bay in the Philippines. Its scientific name, *punctatissimus*, means "very spotted," referring to the many tiny grey spots covering its body.
The fish has a deep, laterally compressed body, with a standard length just over twice its depth. Its head profile is gently curved, with slight indentations before the eye and under the chin, giving it a protruding snout. The front nostril has a low rim that extends into a flap reaching halfway to the rear nostril. A recumbent spine lies embedded in the nape in front of the dorsal fin. Like all rabbitfish, it has 13 dorsal spines and 10 soft rays, plus 7 anal spines and 9 soft rays; these spines are sturdy and contain venom glands. The caudal fin is strongly forked, especially in adults, with thin, pointed lobes. Maximum total length is 35 cm (14 in), though 25 cm (9.8 in) is more typical. The body is dark purplish-brown, covered in tiny, close-set pale dots, while the yellowish tail fin has a brown margin.
This species ranges widely across the western Pacific, from western Indonesia north to the southern Ryukyu Islands, east to the Solomon Islands and Micronesia, and south to the reefs of the Western Australia shelf and the northern Great Barrier Reef off Queensland. It lives at depths of 12 to 30 m (39 to 98 ft) in lagoon and channel reefs, often near reef slopes and harbours.
Adults form pairs and feed on benthic macroalgae. The habitat and behavior of juveniles are unknown. The fin spines produce venom; a study of a related species found rabbitfish venom similar to that of stonefishes.
The peppered spinefoot is caught by trawling and sold in small quantities in Philippine fish markets.
Quick Facts
- Taxon
- Siganus punctatissimus
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The peppered spinefoot was first formally described in 1929 by American ichthyologists Henry Weed Fowler and Barton Appler Bean, with the type locality given as Masinloc Bay in Zambales Province, Philippines. The specific name punctatissimus means 'very spotted,' a reference to the body being covered in tiny grey spots. The species has a deep and laterally compressed body, with a weakly convex dorsal head profile and a protruding snout. Its front nostril has a low rim that expands into a wide flap extending halfway to the rear nostril. A recumbent spine is embedded in the nape in front of the dorsal fin. Like all rabbitfishes, the dorsal fin has 13 spines and 10 soft rays, while the anal fin has 7 spines and 9 soft rays; the fin spines are robust and contain venom glands. The caudal fin is strongly forked, especially in adults, with thin, pointed lobes. Overall color is dark purplish-brown with tiny, close-set pale dots covering the head and body, and the yellowish caudal fin has a brownish margin.
Reader's Guide
The peppered spinefoot is a species of rabbitfish found in the Indo-West Pacific region, with a wide distribution from western Indonesia north to the southern Ryukyu Islands, east to Solomon Islands and Micronesia, and south to the reefs of the Western Australia shelf and the northern Great Barrier Reef off northern Queensland. It inhabits lagoon and channel reefs at depths between 12 and 30 meters, typically near reef slopes and harbors. Adults live as pairs and feed on benthic macroalgae; the habitat and behavior of juveniles are not known. The species produces venom in the spines of its fins, and a study of a congener found that rabbitfish venom is similar to that of stonefishes. It is caught by trawling and sold in small quantities in fish markets in the Philippines. The species attains a maximum total length of 35 cm, though 25 cm is more typical.
Did You Know?
- The specific name punctatissimus means 'very spotted,' referring to the tiny grey spots covering the body.
- The peppered spinefoot has a recumbent spine embedded in the nape in front of the dorsal fin.
- Its venom is similar to that of stonefishes, based on a study of a congener.
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