LEIOGNATHIDAE


Leiognathus decorus, FRLM 30690, 8.0 cm SL

Leiognathus decorus (De Vis, 1884)
Yellowfinned ponyfish

D VIII, 14 - 17 (usually VIII, 16); A III, 13 - 15 (usually III, 14); P1 16 - 20; LL 52 - 69; GR 3 - 7 + 13 - 22. Body deep, compressed, oblong. Mouth protruding downwards; profile of lower jaw concave; small slender teeth arranged in a single row on jaws; cheek naked. Retrorse spines of dorsal and anal fin pterygiophores exposed but blunt. Cheek, breast, and belly widely naked. Color: body generally silvery-white; black blotches on snout tip and nape; dark irregular wavy vertical lines indistinctly on dorsolateral body surface; dorsal and anal fins with yellow margins; pectoral fin often yellowish. Size: maximum length about 13 cm. Distribution: Indo-West Pacific, from Persian Gulf to eastern Australia. Remarks: inhabits soft bottom area at depths shallower than 30 m.