Teleostei (teleosts) >
Eupercaria/misc (Various families in series Eupercaria) >
Labridae (Wrasses) > Xyrichtyinae
Etymology: Iniistius: Latin, in = in + Greek, istion = sail; griffithsi: Named for the collector, Jeremy Griffiths.
Eponymy: Jeremy Griffiths is the son of Owen Griffiths who noted that this was a ‘new’ fish and arranged for a photograph to be taken and a second specimen collected. [...] (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
More on author: Randall.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; pelagic-neritic; depth range 8 - 120 m (Ref. 58466). Tropical
Indian Ocean: Mauritius, Madagascar and Christmas Island.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 14.3 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 58466)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 12; Vertebrae: 25. This species is characterized by the following: Dorsal rays IX,12; anal rays III,12; pectoral rays 12; lateral line interrupted, the pored scales 19-20 + 5 or 6; cheek is naked except for a curved oblique row of 6 small scales from behind to below eye; 1 or 2 small scales dorsoanteriorly on the opercle; gill rakers 19-20; body depth 2.5-2.6 in SL; dorsal profile of snout nearly vertical; first two dorsal spines slender and flexible, the first slightly longer, 2.45-2.55 in head length; space between second and third dorsal spines more than twice that between first and second spines; color when fresh, pale grey, scale edges dorsally on body grey-brown; head grey-brown, operculum suffused with orange, with vertical blue bands; a broad oblique pale blue band containing numerous small black spots
from interorbital space to above opercle; one to several black spots, edged in pale blue, on side of body above tip of pectoral fin; a dusky streak below posterior end of maxilla and lower lip; orangish patch on side of caudal peduncle, each scale with a pale blue spot; median fins bluish grey; pectoral fins orange (Ref. 58466).
Found on sandy bottoms and dives into sand to sleep safely at night or to hide when alarmed (Ref. 90102).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Distinct pairing during breeding (Ref. 205).
Randall, J.E., 2007. Iniistius griffithsi, a new razorfish (Perciformes: Labridae) from Mauritius. Smithiana Bull. 7:9-13. (Ref. 58466)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial
Tools
Special reports
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 24.7 - 28.7, mean 27.2 °C (based on 108 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01047 (0.00408 - 0.02689), b=3.06 (2.84 - 3.28), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.4 ±0.5 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).