Red Gurnard, Chelidonichthys kumu (Cuvier 1829)

Other Names: Bluefin Gurnard, Flying Fish, Flying Gurnard, Gurnard, Kumu Gurnard, Kumukumu (NZ), Latchet

Summary:

A large reddish to reddish-brown gurnard becoming silvery-white below, with a mostly smooth snout and a row of prominent bony scales along the dorsal fin bases. The inner surface of the pectoral fin is olive-green to greyish or purplish with scattered blue spots, a blue margin, and a large black blotch sometimes with white to bluish speckles near the fin base.
Video of a Red Gurnard at a baited underwater camera off New South Wales, depth 50 m.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2018, Chelidonichthys kumu in Fishes of Australia, accessed 06 Feb 2023, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/3752

Red Gurnard, Chelidonichthys kumu (Cuvier 1829)

More Info

Distribution	Widespread in eastern and southern Australia from off Brisbane, southern Queensland, around southern Australia including Tasmania, to Shark Bay, Western Australia; also off Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea. Adults frequently occur at depths of 77-150 m; juveniles enter shallow bays and estuaries, and also inhabit coastal sandy areas.
Features	Dorsal fin VIII-IX + 15-16; Anal fin 14-15; Caudal fin 11; pectoral fin 11+3; Pelvic fin I, 5; Lateral line scales 62-65. Skull without a groove behind eye; front margin of bony rostrum with a broad medial notch or indentation in front of eyes, rostrum mostly smooth without prominent spines. Scales small, somewhat embedded, in 110-120 diagonal rows above lateral line; scales absent from chest and front part of belly; enlarged thorn-like bucklers present along the bases of both dorsal fins; lateral line splitting into two branches on caudal fin. Caudal-fin margin distinctly concave; Pectoral fins large, fin tip extending well beyond the anal-fin origin; lower pectoral-fin rays thickened and free from membrane.
Fisheries	Often taken in bottom trawls, and also on hook and line. The firm slightly dry flesh is excellent eating.
Species Citation	Trigla kumu Cuvier, 1829, Histoire Naturelle des Poissons 4: 50. Type locality: New Zealand.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2018
Resources	Australian Faunal Directory

Red Gurnard, Chelidonichthys kumu (Cuvier 1829)

References

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Richards, W.J. 1999. Triglidae. Gurnards, sea robins, armored gurnards, and armored sea robins. In: K.E. Carpenter and V.H. Niem (eds), FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 4. Bony fishes part 2 (Mugilidae to Carangidae), pp. 2359-2363. FAO, Rome, Italy.

Staples, D. 1972. Growth of the red gurnard (Teleostei, Triglidae) from Pegasus Bay, Canterbury, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 6(3): 365-374.

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