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Melichthys niger (Bloch, 1786)

Black triggerfish
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Melichthys niger
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Nicaragua country information

Common names: Calafate negro
Occurrence: native
Salinity: marine
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments: In range Ref. 2850.
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/nu.html
National Fisheries Authority:
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Tyler, J.C., 1978
National Database:

Common names from other countries

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Tetraodontiformes (Puffers and filefishes) > Balistidae (Triggerfishes)
Etymology: Melichthys: Greek, melas, melaina, melan, black + icthys yos, fish. On the other hand, in Smith et al.,1986: 878), 'body dark brown to black' in https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/266635#page/902/mode/1up.(P. Romero, pers.comm. 03/2022)..
  More on author: Bloch.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 75 m (Ref. 9710), usually 0 - 20 m (Ref. 40849).   Tropical; 30°N - 29°S, 180°W - 180°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Circumglobal. Uncommon in most areas but abundant around isolated oceanic islands (Ref. 9710).

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 50.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5217); common length : 30.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3272)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 3; Dorsal soft rays (total): 30 - 34; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 28 - 30. This species is distinguished by the following characters: a deep groove in front of eye; 20-25 head scale rows from corner of mouth to lower end of gill opening; 57-66 body scale rows from upper end of gill opening to caudal fin base; presence of prominent longitudinal ridges following scale rows of posterior body; slightly rounded to double emarginate caudal fin; a thin white bar neat posterior margin of the caudal fin; black spots on scales forming lines (Ref. 90102).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Inhabit clear seaward reefs. More common around oceanic islands (Ref. 9276). Found on inner and outer reef crests, usually near the slope or drop-off to deeper water, where in small but loose aggregations. Sometimes swim high above substrate feeding on zooplankton (Ref. 48637). May also be solitary (Ref. 90102). Benthopelagic (Ref. 58302). Diet consists primarily of calcareous algae and zooplankton (Ref. 1602); also feed on phytoplankton (Ref. 5213). At Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, southeast Atlantic, groups of about 100 individuals join groups of spinner dolphins to feed on feces and vomits of the cetaceans when they congregate in a shallow bay for rest and social interactions. The postures a dolphin adopts prior to defecating or vomiting are recognized, and the fish begin to converge to the dolphin shortly before the actual voiding. Offal feeding may be regarded as a simple behavioral shift from plankton feeding to drifting offal picking (Ref. 48727). Marketed fresh (Ref. 9770). Minimum depth reported taken from Ref. 128797.

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Oviparous, distinct pairing during breeding (Ref. 205).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Matsuura, Keiichi | Collaborators

Matsuura, K., 2001. Balistidae. Triggerfishes. p. 3911-3928. In K.E. Carpenter and V. Niem (eds.) FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Vol. 6. Bony fishes part 4 (Labridae to Latimeriidae), estuarine crocodiles. FAO, Rome. (Ref. 9770)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 06 June 2011

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: commercial
FAO(Publication : search) | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet compositions
Food consumptions
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Home ranges
Population dynamics
Growths
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversions
Recruitments
Abundances
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturities
Fecundities
Spawnings
Spawning aggregations
Egg(s)
Egg developments
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Anatomy
Gill areas
Brains
Otoliths
Physiology
Body compositions
Nutrients
Oxygen consumptions
Swimming type
Swimming speeds
Visual pigment(s)
Fish sounds
Diseases / Parasites
Toxicities (LC50s)
Genetics
Genetics
Electrophoreses
Heritabilities
Human related
Aquaculture systems
Aquaculture profiles
Strains
Ciguatera cases
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
Collaborators
References
References

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Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 24.4 - 28.9, mean 27.4 (based on 1548 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.6250   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.02570 (0.01232 - 0.05364), b=2.94 (2.77 - 3.11), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  2.4   ±0.0 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Moderate vulnerability (40 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Medium.