Family HEMEROCOETIDAE

Acanthaphritis grandisquamis

© Copyright Günther 1880

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Introduction

This group has typically been treated as a subfamily. Nelson (2006) treated the group as a subfamily of the Percophidae. However, Smith & Johnson (2007) regarded the Percophidae as polyphyletic and moved the subfamily to the Trichonotidae and also included the Creediinae as a subfamily of the Trichonotidae, rather than as a separate family. Subsequently Odani & Imamura (2011) presented evidence that the Leptoscopidae was more closely related to the Creediidae than to the Percophidae and Trichonotidae. To avoid polyphyly and paraphyly we treat each of the groups as distinct families, pending further studies of the group. Thacker et al (2015) recognised the Hemerocoetidae as a distinct family in the suborder Hemerocoetoidei, also including the Creediidae, but not the Trichonotidae.

As recognised here the gorup contains the genera Acanthaphritis, Dactylopsaron, Enigmapercis, Hemerocoetes, Matsubaraea, Osopsaron, Pteropsaron and Squamicreedia, with about 26 described species. Four genera and six species are known from Australia. The group is confined to the Indo-Pacific. Species are found over various depth ranges over sand bottoms from shallow coastal areas to the continental slope.

General References

Günther, A. 1880. Report on the shore fishes procured during the voyage of H.M.S Challenger, in the years 1872–1876. Report on the Scientific Results of the Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger 1873–1876, Zoology 1(6): 1-82 pls 1-32 [pl. 18 (fig. A)]

Imamura, H.& Odani, K. 2013. An overview of the phylogenetic relationships of the suborder Trachinoidei (Acanthomorpha: Perciformes). Ichthyological Research 60(1): 1-15

Nelson, J.S. 2006. Fishes of the World. Hoboken, New Jersey : John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 601 pp.

Smith, D.G. & Johnson, G.D. 2007. A new species of Pteropsaron (Teleostei: Trichonotidae: Hemerocoetinae) from the western Pacific, with notes on related species. Copeia 2007(2): 364–377

Thacker, C.E., Takashi P., Satoh, T.P., Katayama, T., Harrington, R.C., Eytan, R.I. & Near, T.J. 2015. Molecular phylogeny of Percomorpha resolves Trichonotus as the sister lineage to Gobioidei (Teleostei: Gobiiformes) and confirms the polyphyly of Trachinoidei. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 93: 172–179

History of changes