''Apogon imberbis'', the cardinalfish, the Mediterranean cardinalfish or king of the mullets, is a species of

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or hor ...

, a cardinalfish belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Apogonidae Cardinalfishes are a family, Apogonidae, of ray-finned fishes found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans; they are chiefly marine, but some species are found in brackish water and a few (notably ''Glossamia'') are found in fresh water. A h ...

. It is widely distributed in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

and along the warm temperate and tropical eastern

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 ...

coasts from

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

south to the

Gulf of Guinea The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian (zero degrees latitude and longitude) is in the ...

Description

''Apogon imberbis'' has a compressed, ovate body with a large head and a very large eye head large which is much larger than the snout. It has a large, oblique mouth with a protruding lower jaw, which contains rows of small villiform teeth on the mandible, palatine and vomer. The preopercular margin is only slightly serrated and the preopercular ridge is smooth. The

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

is long, reaching to at least the origin of

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

and the

caudal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

shows slight emargination. The scales are large and ctenoid in form, and the lateral line numbers 22-30 scales. The body and fins are coloured red or pink, duskier on the back and upper surface of head. There are two or three dark spots, which are occasionally joined, along base of caudal fin. The maximum recorded size is 15 cm standard length, although 10–12 cm is more usual. The two dorsal fins have a total of 7 spines and 9-10 soft rays 9-10; the

has 2 spines and 8-9 soft rays.

Distribution

''Apogon imberbis'' is widely distributed in the eastern Atlantic from

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

and southern

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

and includes the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

, Cape Verde Islands and the islands of the

. It is found throughout the Mediterranean Sea but does not extend north into the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...

Biology

''Apogon imberbis'' is frequently found on rocky reefs as well as artificial structured reefs from 2-20m in depth. In a study in southern Italy, especially where there are rocky cliffs and caves. It feeds on small fish, invertebrates and plankton. In the Atlantic, ''A. imberbis'' associates with coral and rocky reefs. It is nocturnal and spends the day in cavities or caves either individually or in groups. They can often be abundant on

artificial reef An artificial reef is a human-created underwater structure, typically built to promote marine life in areas with a generally featureless bottom, to control erosion, block ship passage, block the use of trawling nets, or improve surfing. Many re ...

s, especially in the Mediterranean. ''A. imberbis'' breed in June to September, it is a

mouthbrooding Mouthbrooding, also known as oral incubation and buccal incubation, is the care given by some groups of animals to their offspring by holding them in the mouth of the parent for extended periods of time. Although mouthbrooding is performed by a va ...

fish, after internal fertilisation of the eggs the male broods the balls of eggs in his mouth. They are commonly found from two to 20 m depth and are also known to school in large numbers. In winter they appear to move to deeper waters.

Uses

''Apogon imberbis'' is occasionally used as bait for hook and line fishing but in some parts of its range it is consumed by humans. It is occasionally traded in the aquarium trade.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q1402505 imberbis Fish of the East Atlantic Fish of the Mediterranean Sea Fish of West Africa Fauna of the Azores Fauna of the Canary Islands Marine fauna of West Africa Fish described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus