Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Kurtiformes (Nurseryfishes, cardinalfishes.) >
Apogonidae (Cardinalfishes) > Apogoninae
Etymology: Xeniamia: Name from Greek 'Xenos' meaning stranger and 'Amia' referring to a type of fish, often used with
cardinalfish names, treated as feminine noun; atrithorax: Name from Latin 'ater, atra, atrum' meaning black and Greek 'thorax' a masculine noun meaning breastplate, referring to the position of numerous melanophores as a dark spot in advanced of the pelvic-fin base; noun in apposition.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 40 - 119 m (Ref. 110227), usually 70 - 119 m (Ref. 110227). Tropical
Western Pacific: South China Sea off Khanh Hoa Province, Vietnam.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 3.0 cm SL (female)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 8; Vertebrae: 24. This miniature species (less than 3.0 cm SL) is distinguished by the following characters: with a large melanophore patch anterior to insertion of pelvic fin, extending forward on each side of isthmus, progressively thinning out; black stomach, anterior intestine pale with black spots black intestine from second bend; interior of lower gill chamber blackish with concentrated melanophores extending forward to dorsal part of isthmus; D VIII-I,9 with eighth dorsal spine visible, fourth dorsal spine longer than third; A II,8; first gill arch with 9 gill rakers (Ref. 110227).
This species has been taken in shrimp trawls on muddy bottom. Most specimens were collected from 70-119 m, some from 40-60 m, in the main waterway of the Bay of Nha Trang (latter samples might have been pumped through canyons cutting out the outer shelf as proposed for
other fish taxa collected from the unusually shallow depths in this area (Ref. 84063). No specimens or fragments of sea urchins commonly trawled together with Siphamia specimens. Year-to-year fluctuations in density of population were observed with this species present at 18 of 22 stations trawling eastward and southward of Pyramid Island in 2005 and 2007 and two of 17 stations sampled in 2006 and 2009-2012. All samples were made between April and July, and no specimens were collected during a winter monsoon season (October-January). It always appeared in groups of about 10-60 specimens per trawl, with many specimens having ripe ova or brooding eggs. The smallest, 1.45 cm SL was immature. The males with buccal enlargement suggestive of brooding eggs were 2.2-2.4 cm SL and showed loss of teeth on the vomer and palatines. A 2.3 cm SL male had approximately 280 orangish eggs, 0.5 mm in diameter. Females with developed ova were as small as 2.3 cm SL. The largest gravid female was 2.95 cm SL. No possible indications for commensal relationships of this species were present (Ref. 110227).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Fraser, T.H. and A.M. Prokofiev, 2016. A new genus and species of cardinalfish (Percomorpha, Apogonidae, Sphaeramiini) from the coastal waters of Vietnam: luminescent or not? Zootaxa 4144(2):227-242. (Ref. 110227)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: bycatch
Tools
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = No PD50 data [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01445 (0.00680 - 0.03071), b=3.07 (2.89 - 3.25), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.2 ±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).
