Sand eels

Sand eels
	Mediterranean sandal ( Gymnammodytes cicerelus , above) and Tobias fish ( Ammodytes tobianus , below)
Systematics
Sub-cohort :	Neoteleostei
	Acanthomorphata
	Spinefish (Acanthopterygii)
	Perch relatives (Percomorphaceae)
Order :	Celestial gazers (Uranoscopiformes)
Family :	Sand eels
Scientific name
	Ammodytidae
	Bonaparte , 1832

The family of sand eels (Ammodytidae - which means "sand diver" because they dig into the substrate in case of danger) are marine fish from the group of perch relatives (Percomorphaceae). They are an important food for predatory fish such as cod or haddock , and for seabirds such as the puffin .

features

They are small, elongated fish with absent or far forward (throaty) ventral fins . The dorsal fin extends almost the entire length of the body, supported by 40 to 69 fin rays , the anal fin with 14 to 36 fin rays, is half as long, both fins have no hard rays. The caudal fin is forked, pelvic fins are absent, except in the genera Bleekeria and Protammodytes . The lateral line organ is high near the dorsal fin, and there is no swim bladder . What is striking about the protruding mouth (suction snap!) Is that the long ascending premaxillary process with the rostral cartilage represents a separate element here, so that it admittedly pushes the premaxillary forward, but does not participate in its pre-rotation (otherwise known from any spine . The food consists of all movable ones Invertebrates of suitable size and of course (young) fish.

Sand eels grow to be seven to 40 centimeters long.

distribution

More than 30 species of sand eels live in cold and temperate regions of the Atlantic , Pacific and Indian Oceans . The 20 centimeter large Tobias fish ( Ammodytes tobianus ) and the up to 40 centimeter large spotted sand eel ( Hyperoplus lanceolatus ) live on the North and Baltic Sea coasts . In the Mediterranean the 18-centimeter lives Mittelmeersandaal ( Gymnammodytes cicerelus ).

Systematics

The closest relatives of the Ammodytidae are Cheimarrichthys fosteri and the sand perch (Pinguipedidae), as well as the sky- gazers (Uranoscopidae).

Ammodytes hexapterus

Ammodytes dubius

Spotted Great Sand Eel

Subfamily Ammodytidae
- Genus Gymnammodytes Duncker & Mohr, 1935
  
  Gymnammodytes capensis (Barnard, 1927)
  
  Mediterranean sandael ( Gymnammodytes cicerelus ( Rafinesque , 1810) )
  
  Naked sandal ( Gymnammodytes semisquamatus (Jourdain, 1879) )
- Genus Hyperoplus Günther, 1862
  - Immaculate great sand eel ( Hyperoplus immaculatus (Corbin, 1950) )
  - Spotted great sand eel ( Hyperoplus lanceolatus (Le Sauvage, 1824) )
Subfamily Bleekeriinae
- Genus Ammodytoides Duncker & Mohr, 1939
  - Ammodytoides gilli (Bean, 1895)
  - Ammodytoides idai Randall & Earle, 2008
  - Ammodytoides kanazawai Shibukawa & Ida, 2013
  - Ammodytoides kimurai Ida & Randall, 1993
  - Ammodytoides leptus Collette & Randall, 2000
  - Ammodytoides praematura Randall & Earle, 2008
  - Ammodytoides pylei Randall, Ida & Earle, 1994
  - Ammodytoides renniei (Smith, 1957)
  - Ammodytoides vagus (McCulloch & Waite, 1916)
  - Ammodytoides xanthops Randall & Heemstra, 2008
- Genus Bleekeria Günther, 1862
  
  Bleekeria kallolepis
  - Bleekeria estuaria Randall & Ida, 2014
  - Bleekeria kallolepis Günther , 1862
  - Bleekeria mitsukurii Jordan & Evermann, 1902
  - Bleekeria murtii Joshi, Zacharia & Kanthan, 2012
  - Bleekeria profunda Randall & Ida, 2014
  - Bleekeria viridianguilla (Fowler, 1931)
- Genus Lepidammodytes Ida, Sirimontaporn & Monkolprasit, 1994
  - Lepidammodytes macrophthalmus Ida, Sirimontaporn & Monkolprasit, 1994
- Genus Protammodytes Ida, Sirimontaporn & Monkolprasit, 1994
  - Protammodytes brachistos Ida, Sirimontaporn & Monkolprasit, 1994
  - Protammodytes sarisa (Robins & Böhlke, 1970)
  - Protammodytes ventrolineatus Randall & Ida, 2014

literature

Joseph S. Nelson : Fishes of the World . John Wiley & Sons, 2006, ISBN 0-471-25031-7 .
Orr, JW, Wildes, S., Kai, Y., Raring, N., Nakabo, T., Katugin, O. & Guyon, J. (2015): Systematics of North Pacific sand lances of the genus Ammodytes based on molecular and morphological evidence, with the description of a new species from Japan. Fishery Bulletin, 113 (2): 129-156.

Individual evidence

↑ H. Kayser: Comparative study on pre-stretching mechanisms of the upper jaw in fish. The structure and function of the jaw and gill apparatus of bony fish of the genera Ammodytes and Callionymus . Zool. Contribution (NF) 7 (1962): 321-446.
↑ Ricardo Betancur-R, Edward O. Wiley, Gloria Arratia, Arturo Acero, Nicolas Bailly, Masaki Miya, Guillaume Lecointre and Guillermo Ortí: Phylogenetic classification of bony fishes . BMC Evolutionary Biology, BMC series - July 2017, DOI: 10.1186 / s12862-017-0958-3
↑ ^a ^b Hitoshi Ida, Pailoj Sirirnontaporn & Supap Monkolpraslt: Comparative Morphology of the Fishes of the Family Ammodytidae, with a Description of Two New Genera and Two New Species. Zoological Studies 33 (4): 251-277 (1994)

Web links

Commons : Sand Eels - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Sand eels on Fishbase.org (English)

[1] H. Kayser: Comparative study on pre-stretching mechanisms of the upper jaw in fish. The structure and function of the jaw and gill apparatus of bony fish of the genera Ammodytes and Callionymus . Zool. Contribution (NF) 7 (1962): 321-446.

[2] Ricardo Betancur-R, Edward O. Wiley, Gloria Arratia, Arturo Acero, Nicolas Bailly, Masaki Miya, Guillaume Lecointre and Guillermo Ortí: Phylogenetic classification of bony fishes . BMC Evolutionary Biology, BMC series - July 2017, DOI: 10.1186 / s12862-017-0958-3

[Ida-3] Hitoshi Ida, Pailoj Sirirnontaporn & Supap Monkolpraslt: Comparative Morphology of the Fishes of the Family Ammodytidae, with a Description of Two New Genera and Two New Species. Zoological Studies 33 (4): 251-277 (1994)