''Minyichthys'' is a circumtropical

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

pipefish Pipefishes or pipe-fishes (Syngnathinae) are a subfamily of small fishes, which, together with the seahorses and seadragons ('' Phycodurus'' and '' Phyllopteryx''), form the family Syngnathidae. Description Pipefish look like straight-bodied se ...

es consisting of species from the

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

and eastern and western

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

regions. The genus is characterized as having a maximum

standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology. Overall length * Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish ...

of about 60 mm, with two or three anal fin rays. ''Minyichthys'' species can be differentiated from members of the closely related genus '' Micrognathus'' by their higher frequency of total sub

dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage * Dorsal co ...

rings (seven to 11 as opposed to three to seven). Like many other pipefishes, male members of this genus carry their young in a brood pouch underneath the tail. These small, secretive fishes live in shallow algae or reef habitats, and in tidal pools and sheltered reef flats. Some species are known to venture into deeper waters.

Species

The currently recognized species in this genus are: * '' Minyichthys brachyrhinus'' (

Herald A herald, or a herald of arms, is an officer of arms, ranking between pursuivant and king of arms. The title is commonly applied more broadly to all officers of arms. Heralds were originally messengers sent by monarchs or noblemen ...

, 1953) - Indo-Pacific * '' Minyichthys inusitatus'' C. E. Dawson, 1983 - Atlantic Dawson, C. E. 1983. Western Atlantic occurrence of the genus ''Minyichthys'' (Pisces: Syngnathidae), with description of M. inusitatus n. sp. Copeia 1983(3):774-776. * '' Minyichthys myersi'' (

& J. E. Randall, 1972) (Myer's pipefish) - western

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

to western

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

* '' Minyichthys sentus'' C. E. Dawson, 1982 - eastern Atlantic

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q953969 Syngnathidae Marine fish genera Taxa named by Earl Stannard Herald Taxa named by John Ernest Randall