Pirate perch

Pirate perch
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Percopsiformes
Suborder: Aphredoderoidei
Family: Aphredoderidae
Bonaparte, 1846
Genus: Aphredoderus
Lesueur in Cuvier & Valenciennes, 1833
Species:
A. sayanus
Binomial name
Aphredoderus sayanus
(Gilliams, 1824)
Subspecies
  • Aphredoderus sayanus gibbosus LeSueur, 1833
  • Aphredoderus sayanus sayanus (Gilliams, 1824)
Synonyms
  • Scolopsis sayanus Gilliams, 1824
  • Aphredoderus sayanus sayanus (Gilliams, 1824)
  • Aphredoderus gibbosus Lesueur, 1833
  • Aphredoderus sayanus gibbosus Lesueur, 1833
  • Sternotremia isolepis Nelson, 1876
  • Aphrodedirus cookianus Jordan, 1877
  • Asternotremia mesotrema Jordan, 1877

The pirate perch (Aphredoderus sayanus) is a freshwater fish that commonly inhabits coastal waters along the east coast of the United States and the backwater areas of the Mississippi Valley.[2][3] This species is often found towards the bottom of clear, warm water habitats with low currents. These fish are normally solitary, carnivorous, and nocturnal. The pirate perch is known to consume live mosquito larva, amphipods, glass shrimp, meal worms, small fish, dragonfly and stonefly larvae, and earthworms.[4]

The pirate perch is related to the trout-perches, but only loosely; it is the only species in its family, Aphredoderidae. The genus name, Aphredoderus, literally translates to "excrement throat" in Greek, referencing the unusual location of its anus in the throat region.[2] The specific name sayanus is a tribute to naturalist Thomas Say.[5] Charles C. Abbott gave the fish its common name after observing it eating only other fishes.[5]

  1. ^ NatureServe (2013). "Aphredoderus sayanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T202607A2746073. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T202607A2746073.en. Retrieved 13 April 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Aphredoderus sayanus summary page". FishBase. Retrieved 2024-10-12.
  3. ^ Boltz, J.M.; Stauffer Jr, J.R. (1986). "Branchial brooding in the pirate perch, Aphredoderus sayanus(Gilliams)". Copeia. 1986 (4): 1030–1031. doi:10.2307/1445309. JSTOR 1445309.
  4. ^ Parker, N.C.; Simco, B.A. (1975). "Activity patterns, feeding and behavior of the Pirate Perch,Aphredoderus sayanus". Copeia. 1975 (3): 572–574. doi:10.2307/1443661. JSTOR 1443661.
  5. ^ a b Becker, George C. (1983). Fishes of Wisconsin. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. p. 735. ISBN 0-299-08790-5.