Monacanthus ciliatus
species of fish
Monacanthus ciliatus, commonly known as the fringed filefish, the cuckold or the leather-fish, is a species of bony fish commonly found in shallow water in the western Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
Description
The fringed filefish is a laterally flattened fish with a deeply keeled body and a dewlap on the underside. It typically grows to a length of 10 to 14 cm (4 to 6 in), with a maximum length of 20 cm (8 in). The eyes are large, the snout is short and pointed, and the mouth is small, with strong teeth. The dorsal fin is in two parts; the front section is just behind the eyes and consists of two spines, the first one being long and erectile and the second one being tiny; the second part starts further back and consists entirely of soft rays. The pectoral fins are small and the pelvic fin resembles a spine. The caudal fin is short and fan-shaped and consists of branched soft rays. The skin is clad in very small scales, which gives the fish a leathery appearance. The skin is also dotted with scattered small, pointed, fleshy growths. The colour of the fish varies with the surroundings, being greenish in seagrass meadows and brown or tan on reefs or in sandy areas.
The public source identifies “Monacanthus ciliatus” as species of fish. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Monacanthus, ciliatus and species.
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This entry incorporates text from “Monacanthus ciliatus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.