Long-snouted coral guardian
| Long-snouted coral guardian | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A long- snouted coral guardian ( Oxycirrhites typus ) lurks for prey in a gorgonian |
||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Oxycirrhites | ||||||||||||
| Bleeker , 1857 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Oxycirrhites typus | ||||||||||||
| Bleeker, 1857 |
The long-snouted coral guardian or long-snouted tufted perch ( Oxycirrhites typus ) is a fish from the family of tufted perch (Cirrhitidae) and thus belongs to the perch relatives (Percomorphaceae). It is the only species in the genus Oxycirrhites .
features
Long-snouted coral guardians have an elongated, laterally compressed shape. The long, drawn out snout is typical. The fish have a checkered pattern with vertical and horizontal red stripes with a white basic color. They become 10 to 13 centimeters long, females stay smaller.
Occurrence
Long-snouted coral guardians are found in the Red Sea and the tropical Indo-Pacific , from East Africa to Japan , Hawaii , the Gulf of California and the Galapagos Islands .
Way of life
Long-snouted coral guards live at depths of 10 to 100 meters and hide in gorgonians and squirrel corals (Antipatharia), where they are well camouflaged with their markings. They live in harem associations, which consist of one male and two to eight females. Long-snouted coral guardians feed on small fish and crustaceans , which they prey on their coral in a quick advance.
Aquarium keeping
Long-snouted coral guardians can be kept well in coral reef aquariums. As in their natural environment, they should be at least partially overgrown with gorgonians. It's best to keep a pair. The harem attitude in aquariums of normal size fails due to aggression between the animals. The fish also spawn in the aquarium, where they can jump out of the water. The aquarium must therefore have a sufficiently high rim. The fish should definitely be given frozen food such as Artemia , Mysis and Krill , but they also eat granulated food . Like all coral guardians, they are very voracious. If they are hungry, they can attack shrimps and small fish such as damselfish of the genus Chromis . With their tweezers-like mouth, they can swallow surprisingly large chunks of food. If you put new fish in the aquarium, the long-snouted tufted bass are often penetratingly curious or even aggressive towards the newcomers. This behavior subsides after a day or two. Because of their red and white drawing, they are nicknamed kitchen towels among marine aquarists .
literature
- Hans Esterbauer: long-nosed mongoose in the aquarium. In: DATZ 2/96
Web links
- Long-snouted coral guardian on Fishbase.org (English)