''Cheilodactylus'' is a

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 ...

of marine

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 h ...

es belonging to the

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

Cheilodactylidae Cheilodactylidae , commonly called morwongs but also known as butterfish, fingerfins, jackassfish, sea carp, snappers, and moki, is a family of marine ray-finned fish. They are found in subtropical oceans in the Southern Hemisphere. The common ...

, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the North Pacific Ocean.

Taxonomy

''Cheilodactylus'' was first formally described in 1803 by the French naturalist

Bernard Germain de Lacépède Bernard-Germain-Étienne de La Ville-sur-Illon, comte de Lacépède or La Cépède (; 26 December 17566 October 1825) was a French naturalist and an active freemason. He is known for his contribution to the Comte de Buffon's great work, the ...

when he described ''Cheilodactylus fasciatus'' which was its

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...

monotypy In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

. The traditional delimitation of the families Cheilodactlidae and

Latridae Latridae commonly called trumpeters, is a family of marine ray-finned fish. They are found in temperate seas in the Southern Hemisphere. The classification of the species within the Latridae and the related Cheilodactylidae is unclear.They are ...

is based on morphological differences, but the reliability of these differences has been called into doubt, and a phylogenetic analyses and

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar worki ...

have not supported this arrangement. This has led to some authorities suggesting that the majority of species in Cheilodactylidae should be placed in Latridae. A result of this rearrangement is that the only species which would remain in Cheilodactylidae are ''Cheilodactylus fasciatus'' and ''C. pixi'' from

southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number ...

. This is because these analyses resolved the genus ''Cheilodactylus'' as

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of conver ...

. These studies appear to show that most of the species in ''Cheilodactylus'' ''

sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular c ...

'' instead apparently to belong in several different genera and are not even members of the same family, but how many and their exact delimitation is not clear at present. The outlier species have been assigned to '' Chirodactylus'', ''

Goniistius ''Goniistius'' is a subgenus of marine ray-finned fishes, traditionally classified as being within the genus '' Cheilodactylus'' and belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family and ...

'', '' Morwong'' and ''

Pseudogoniistius The magpie perch (''Cheilodactylus (Pseudogoniistius) nigripes''), magpie morwong or black-striped morwong, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, traditionally regarded as belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, the members of which are common ...

'', but DNA and morphologic analyses found those species to be nested within

and more derived than the kelpfish,

marblefish ''Aplodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes, commonly known as marblefishes or sea carps. It is the only genus in the monogeneric family, Aplodactylidae. The fishes in this genus are found in the south eastern Indian Ocean and the ...

and the ''Cheilodactylus'' type species ''C. fasciatus''. The name of the genus is a compound of ''cheilos'' meaning “lip”, a reference to the thick, fleshy lips of the adults, and ''daktylos'' which means “finger”, a reference to the elongated lower rays on 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 ...

Species

The genus ''Cheilodactylus'' ''sensu lato'' includes sixteen species, this list shows the genera they have been assigned to under the proposed revised taxonomy: *''Cheilodactylus'' ** ''

Cheilodactylus fasciatus The redfingers (''Cheilodactylus fasciatus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, commonly referred to as morwongs. It is found only off the coasts of Namibia and South Africa, in rock pools and from ...

'' Lacépède, 1803 (Redfingers) ** '' Cheilodactylus pixi'' M. M. Smith, 1980 (Barred fingerfin) *'' Chirodactylus'' ** ''

Cheilodactylus spectabilis The red moki (''Cheilodactylus spectabilis'') also known as the banded morwong, brown-banded morwong, carp or nanua is a species of marine ray-finned fish, traditionally regarded as belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, commonly referred to ...

'' F. W. Hutton, 1872 (Red moki) *''

'' ** ''

Cheilodactylus francisi ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' C. P. Burridge, 2004 (Blacktip morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus gibbosus ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' J. Richardson, 1841 (Western crested morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus plessisi ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' J. E. Randall, 1983 (Plessis' morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus quadricornis ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the Family (biology), family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemis ...

'' Günther, 1860 ** ''

Cheilodactylus rubrolabiatus ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' G. R. Allen & Heemstra, 1976 ** ''

Cheilodactylus vestitus ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' ( Castelnau, 1879) (Crested morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus vittatus ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' A. Garrett, 1864 (Hawaiian morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus zebra ''Cheilodactylus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, known as morwongs, although this name is not unique to this family. They are found in the temperate waters of the southern hemisphere and in the N ...

'' Döderlein ( de), 1883 (Redlip morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus zonatus The spottedtail morwong (''Cheilodactylus (Goniistius) zonatus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, traditionally regarded as belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, the members of which are commonly known as morwongs. It is found in the n ...

'' G. Cuvier, 1830 (Spottedtail morwong) *'' Morwong'' ** ''

Cheilodactylus fuscus The red morwong (''Cheilodactylus (Morwong) fuscus''), also known as the sea carp, is a species of marine ray finned fish traditionally regarded as belonging to the Family (biology), family Cheilodactylidae, the members of which are commonly kno ...

'' Castelnau, 1879 (Red morwong) ** ''

Cheilodactylus ephippium The painted moki (''Cheilodactylus (Morwong) ephippium''), also known as the painted morwong, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, traditionally regarded as belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, the members of which are commonly known as m ...

McCulloch McCulloch is a Scottish surname. It's a variation of the Northern Irish surname McCullough. It's commonly found in Galloway. Notable people with the surname include: *Alan McCulloch (politician), New Zealand politician *Alan McLeod McCulloch (1 ...

& Waite, 1916 (Painted moki) *''

'' ** ''

Cheilodactylus nigripes The magpie perch (''Cheilodactylus (Pseudogoniistius) nigripes''), magpie morwong or black-striped morwong, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, traditionally regarded as belonging to the family Cheilodactylidae, the members of which are comm ...

'' J. Richardson, 1850 (Magpie perch)

References

Marine fish genera * Fish described in 1803 Taxa named by Bernard Germain de Lacépède {{Perciformes-stub