Pagellus
Genus of fishes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pagellus is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging the family Sparidae, which includes the seabreams and porgies. These fishes are found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea and the western Indian Ocean.
| Pagellus Temporal range: [1] | |
|---|---|
| |
| Pagellus bogaraveo | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Acanthuriformes |
| Family: | Sparidae |
| Genus: | Pagellus Valenciennes, 1830 |
| Type species | |
| Sparus erythrinus | |
| Species | |
|
see text | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Taxonomy
Pagellus was first proposed as a genus in 1830 by the French zoologist Achille Valenciennes. The type species was subsequently designated as Sparus erythrinus by Eugène Anselme Sébastien Léon Desmarest in 1856.[2] Linnaeus described S. erythrinus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae with its type locality given as the Mediterranean and America.[3] This genus is placed in the family Sparidae within the order Spariformes by the 5th edition of Fishes of the World.[4] Some authorities classify this genus in the subfamily Pagellinae,[5] but the 5th edition of Fishes of the World does not recognise subfamilies within the Sparidae.[4]
Etymology
Pagellus is derived from pagel, one of the common names of the common pandora among sailors in Mediterranean coasts of the Provence and Languedoc regions of France (also known as pageau).[6]
Species
Pagellus contains the following species:[7]
- Pagellus acarne (Risso, 1827) (Axillary seabream)
- Pagellus affinis Boulenger, 1888 (Arabian seabream)
- Pagellus bellottii Steindachner, 1882 (Red Pandora)
- Pagellus bogaraveo (Brünnich, 1768) (Blackspot seabream)
- Pagellus erythrinus (Linnaeus 1758) (Common pandora)
- Pagellus natalensis Steindachner, 1903 (Natal pandora)
Characteristics
Pageluus seabreams are characterised by having an oblong-shaped body that is normally silvery pink in colour. The scales on the head extend to beyond the front of the eyes. The bases of the dorsal and anal fins are covered with a low sheath covered in scales.[8] The largest of the six species in Pagellus is the blackspot seabream (P. bogaraveo) with a maximum published standard length of 70 cm (28 in) while the smallest is the Natal pandora (P. natalensis) with a maximum published total length of 30 cm (12 in).[7]