Snubnose Garfish, Arrhamphus sclerolepis Günther 1866

Other Names: Jumping Halfbeak, No Bill Garfish, No-bill Garfish, Northern Snub-nosed Garfish, Short Bill Garfish, Short-beaked Garfish, Short-bill, Snubbie, Snub-nosed Garfish, South-east Snub-nosed Garfish

A Snubnose Garfish, Arrhamphus sclerolepis, caught at Machans Beach, Queensland. Source: Lek / Bowerbird, http://www.bowerbird.org.au/. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Summary:

A dull olive-green garfish with a short lower jaw, a whitish to silvery belly, a silvery mid-lateral stripe and sometimes several broken stripes along the sides. The lower jaw is relatively longer in juveniles than adults.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2018, Arrhamphus sclerolepis in Fishes of Australia, accessed 24 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/4083

Snubnose Garfish, Arrhamphus sclerolepis Günther 1866

More Info

Distribution	Carnarvon, Western Australia, to about Lindeman Island and Bowen, Queensland, with (Arrhamphus sclerolepis sclerolepis), with (A. sclerolepis krefftii) from about Rockhampton, Queensland to Laurieton, New South Wales, and possibly as far south as Port Jackson, New South Wales. The species also occurs in southern Papua New Guinea. Inhabits shallow coastal waters, brackish estuaries and the lower reaches of freshwater rivers, streams and some lakes. Large schools often forage around aquatic vegetation.
Features	Dorsal fin 13-16; Anal fin 14-17; Gill rakers (first arch) 21-25; Vertebrae 45-48. Lower jaw proportionately much shorter at larger sizes. Anal rays usually 15; vertebrae 45-48, usually 46 or 47. The subspecies A. sclerolepis kreffti has 13-16 dorsal-fin rays, 15-17 anal-fin rays, 48-50 vertebrae and 19-21 gill rakers.
Fisheries	Taken by commercial and recreational fishers, and considered to be an excellent food fish.
Similar Species	The Snubnose Garfish can be recognised by its very short lower jaw, which is much shorter than the lower jaw of other garfish species.
Etymology	Arrhamphus is from the Greek a meaning 'without' and rhamphos meaning 'bill, beak'. The common name, Snubnose Garfish, refers to the short lower jaw.
Species Citation	Arrhamphus sclerolepis Günther, 1866, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. 6: 276. Type locality: Australia (as 'New Zealand').
Author	Bray, D.J. 2018
Resources	Australian Faunal Directory

Snubnose Garfish, Arrhamphus sclerolepis Günther 1866

References

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