Old Wife, Enoplosus armatus (White 1790)


Other Names: Angelfish, Bastard Dory, Double Scalare, Moonlighter, Zebra Fish, Zebrafish, Zebra-fish

Old Wives, Enoplosus armatus, between Shelly Beach and Fairy Bower, Manly, New South Wales, April 2017. Source: Erik Schlogl / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial

Summary:
The Old Wife is easily recognised by its deep compressed body, very tall "spikey" dorsal and anal fins and prominent dark brown to black and white bands.

Video of Enoplosus armatus at Esperance, Western Australia.

The derogatory name "Old Wife" reportedly refers to sound made by this species grinding its teeth when caught on hook and line.

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2022, Enoplosus armatus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 29 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/445

Old Wife, Enoplosus armatus (White 1790)

More Info


Distribution

Wide Bay just south of Fraser Island, Queensland, to South Passage, Western Australia, including northern and eastern Tasmania. Inhabits inshore reefs, often among kelp at depths to 100 m. Juveniles inhabits estuaries, often sheltering in seagrass beds.

Features

Dorsal fin VIII; I, 14-15; Anal fin III, 14-15; Pectoral fin 13-14; Pelvic fin I, 5; Caudal fin 17; Lateral line scales 55-60.  Body deep, very compressed, oval in shape, head concave with a short pointed snout; dorsal and anal fins high anteriorly, first dorsal distinctly separate from the second; pelvic fins large, prominent.

Size

To 30 cm.

Colour

Body silvery-white to cream, with 6-8 dark brown to black vertical bands of varying widths, the widest and most prominent bands extending from the spinous dorsal-fin to the pelvic fin, and from the tip of the second dorsal fin through the beginning of the soft anal-fin rays respectively. Pale part of fins may be pinkish.

Feeding

Feeds on small invertebrates, mostly crustaceans and marine worms. Juveniles may set up cleaning stations to remove parasites from other fishes.

Fisheries

Of no interest to fisheries.

Conservation

IUCN: Least Concern

Remarks

The common name "Old Wife" is from the grinding or grating noise made when the fish is captured. The species has venomous fin spines, however there is no associated venom gland.

Similar Species

The Old Wife is the only species in the Family Enoplosidae.

Etymology

The specific name is from the Latin armatus (= armed with sharp spines) in reference to the dorsal-fin spines.

Species Citation

Chaetodon armatus White 1790, Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales: 254, pl 39 (fig. 1). Type data: locality: between Broken Bay and Botany Bay, New South Wales.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2022

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Old Wife, Enoplosus armatus (White 1790)

References


De Vis, C.W. 1911. A second species of Enoplosus. Annals of the Queensland Museum 10: 29 (described as Enoplosus serotinus)

Forster, J.R. 1792. Tagebuch ein der Reise nach Neu-Südwallis … erstem Wunderzte der in Port Jackson angelegten neuen Kolonie (J. White). Magazin vol merkwürdigen neuen Reisebeschreibungen 9: 1-287 (described from Botany Bay, New South Wales, as Gasterosteus serratus)

Glover, C.J.M. 1994. Family Enoplosidae. In: Gomon, M.F., C.J.M. Glover & R.H. Kuiter (eds) The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. 992 p., 810 figs.

Gomon, M.F. 2008. Family Enoplosidae (pp. 609-610) In: Gomon, M.F., D.J. Bray & R.H. Kuiter (eds) The Fishes of Australia's Southern Coast. Reed New Holland, Chatswood, Australis. 928 p.

Hindell, J.S., G.P. Jenkins & M.J. Keough. 2000. Variability in abundances of fishes associated with seagrass habitats in relation to diets of predatory fishes. Marine Biology 136(4): 725-737.

Holleman, W., Fennessy, S. & Russell, B. 2020. Enoplosus armatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T143616007A143616622. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T143616007A143616622.en. Accessed on 09 January 2022.

Hoschke, A., Whisson, G. & Moore, G.I. 2019. Complete list of fishes from Rottnest Island. pp. 150-161 in Whisson, G. & Hoschke, A. (eds) The Rottnest Island fish book. 2nd ed. Perth : Aqua Research and Monitoring Services.

Hutchins, J.B. 2001. Enoplosidae. p. 3287 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds) The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 5 2791-3379 pp.

Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. 180 p.

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3)

Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 p. [248]

Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. 433 p.

Kuiter, R. & Kuiter, S. 2018. Coastal sea-fishes of south-eastern Australia. Seaford, Victoria : Aquatic Photographics, 371 pp.

Lacépède, B.G. 1802. Histoire Naturelle des Poissons. Paris : chez Plassan Vol. 4 728 pp. 16 pls. (as Enoplosus white, an unnecessary new name for Chaetodon armatus White, 1790).

Last, P.R., Scott, E.O.G. & Talbot, F.H. 1983. Fishes of Tasmania. Hobart : Tasmanian Fisheries Development Authority 563 pp. figs [381]

May, J.L. & J.G.H. Maxwell. 1986. Trawl fish from temperate waters of Australia. CSIRO Division of Fisheries Research, Tasmania. 492 p.

Neira, F.J., A.G. Miskiewicz & T. Trnski. 1998. Larvae of temperate Australian fishes: laboratory guide for larval fish identification. University of Western Australia Press. 474 p.

Shaw, G. 1794. Zoology of New Holland. J. Sowerby, London. v. 1: 1-33, Pls. 1-12. (described from Botany Bay, New South Wales, as Chaetodon constrictus)

Smith, W.L. & W.C. Wheeler. 2006. Venom evolution widespread in fishes: a phylogenetic rode map for the bioprospecting of piscine venoms. Journal of Heredity 97(3): 206-217.

Steene, R.C. 1978. Butterfly and Angelfishes of the World. Australia. Sydney : A.H. & A.W. Reed Vol. 1 144 pp. 216 figs.

White, J. 1790. Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales with sixty-five plates of non-descript animals, birds, lizards, serpents, curious cones of trees and other natural productions. London : Debrett 299 pp. 65 pls. See ref at BHL

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37366001

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Danger:Venomous fin spines

Depth:0-100 m

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:30 cm

Native:Endemic

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map