Sphaeramia orbicularis
species of fish
The orbiculate cardinalfish, chubby cardinal, or polka-dot cardinalfish (Sphaeramia orbicularis) is a species of Apogonidae (cardinalfishes). It grows to about 10 cm total length, and has a thin, dark vertical 'waistband' with scattered dark spots toward the tail. It is found in coastal areas throughout much of the Indo-Pacific, including off East Africa, Kiribati, the Ryukyu Islands, New Caledonia, Belau, and the eastern Caroline and Mariana Islands.
The male incubates the eggs until they hatch. It eats mostly planktonic crustaceans, mainly at night. It is not a common marine aquarium fish.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Sphaeramia orbicularis” as species of fish. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as species of fish. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 24, 2024. The linked authority identifier is Q1042711. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
Scientific names, classifications and consensus can change while older terminology persists in catalogues and historical literature. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Sphaeramia orbicularis” 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.