Scientific Name
Ephippus orbis

Common Name
Orbfish

Biology
Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 19-20; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 15 - 17. Head and body silvery blue-green. Four or 5 faint dark blue bars often visible on body. Fins dusky. Body orbicular and strongly compressed, its depth more than twice length of head. Eye above horizontal axis through mouth. Mouth small, the maxilla not reaching past vertical at front edge of eye. Jaws with bands of slender, incisiform teeth with a single lanceolate cusp. No teeth on palatines or vomer. Preopercle distinctly serrate, with a broad naked margin. Opercle without spines (Ref 43039).

Classification

Classified By

Bloch, 1787

Class

Ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii)

Order

Perch-like fish (Perciformes)

Family

Spadefishes, batfishes and scats (Ephippidae)

Distribution

Region

Indo-West Pacific

Distribution

Indo-West Pacific: Persian Gulf to Natal, South Africa, eastward to India and Lesser Sunda Island, Indonesia, north to Japan (Ref. 559) and Taiwan, south to northern Australia (Ref. 9710).

Range

Unknown

Environment

Climate

Tropical

Water Temperature From

Unknown °C

Water Temperature To

Unknown °C

Depth From - meters

10 m

Depth To - meters

30 m

Zone

reef-associated

Environment

Marine; reef-associated; amphidromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 10 - 30 m (Ref. 9710)

Trophic Level

3.99 s.e. 0.61 Based on food items.

Occurs in Marine / Salt water

True

Occurs in Brackish water

False

Occurs in Fresh Water

False

Occurs on Reefs

True

Is kept in Aquariums

False

Physical Size and Genetics

Maximum Length

25.0 cm

Common Length

Unknown cm

Phylogenetic Diversity Index

PD50 = 0.7500 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Human Uses and Population

Human Uses

Fisheries: commercial

Vulnerability

Low vulnerability (23 of 100)

Resilience

High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)

Threat To Humans

Harmless

IUCN Red List Status

Not Evaluated