Pirate perch
| Pirate perch | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pirate perch ( Aphredoderus sayanus ) |
||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the family | ||||||||||||
| Aphredoderidae | ||||||||||||
| Bonaparte , 1846 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Aphredoderus | ||||||||||||
| Lesueur in Cuvier & Valenciennes , 1833 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Aphredoderus sayanus | ||||||||||||
| ( Gilliams , 1824) |
The pirate perch ( Aphredoderus sayanus ) is a freshwater fish from the order of the perch-like . It is the only species in the genus Aphredoderus and the family Aphredoderidae. It got its common name ( English "pirate perch") from Charles Conrad Abbott , when he observed that pirate perch kept in an aquarium ate all other fish of suitable size.
distribution and habitat
The freshwater fish lives in eastern North America , mainly in lowlands south of Long Island . Also in parts of the Great Lakes and Mississippi Valley drainage system.
Low-current, warm and clear water is the habitat of the pirate bass. He prefers to stay in densely vegetated areas, on roots and on the bottom of the water, and on collapsed slopes .
features
The pirate perch has an elongated, only slightly flattened body. It is scaled with comb scales , which also cover the sides of the large head. The lower jaw protrudes a little. The jaw , ploughshare , palatine bone and wing bones are covered with fine rows of teeth.
The dark olive green to brown color is interrupted by dark spots, which are often arranged in longitudinal bands. The underside is yellow-brown. All fins are opaque gray-green with the caudal fin bearing two dark transverse bands on its base. During the spawning season , the males take on a deep black hue.
A maximum size of 13 centimeters is mainly achieved by the females, the males usually stay smaller and are less full of color.
The most conspicuous feature is the position of the anus; if it is still directly in front of the anal fin in young animals, it shifts forward to under the throat with increasing age.
Number of fin rays :
- Dorsal III – IV / 10–11
- Ventral VII
- Anal II-III / 6-7
The third hard ray of the anal fin is still pronounced as a soft ray in young pirate bass and is transformed as it grows.
Way of life
The nocturnal carnivore feeds on aquatic insects and their larvae, small crustaceans and occasionally small fish. During the day he hides between aquatic plants or trees lying in the water. Outside the spawning season, the pirate perch lives solitary and behaves aggressively towards other species. During the mating season in May, the females huddle together and deposit their spawn between roots growing parallel to the current. The males assembled for mating try to fertilize the clutch and at the same time try to prevent fertilization by other males with aggressive behavior. A female can produce 100 to 400 eggs, depending on her size. To what extent brood care is carried out by the parents is controversial, but it is usually assumed that the parent animals will no longer take care of their offspring after fertilization.
The maximum life expectancy of the pirate perch is about four years.
swell
literature
- Joseph S. Nelson: Fishes of the World. 4th edition. Wiley, Hoboken 2006, ISBN 978-0471250319 .
- Günther Sterba : Freshwater fish in the world. Weltbild, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-89350-991-7 .
Web links
- Pirate perch on Fishbase.org (English)
- Aphredoderus sayanus on the Animal Diversity Web
- Aphredoderus sayanus onthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: NatureServe, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2013.