Reef Fish Quiz

Witfull

Witfull

Well-Known Member
yup quadromaculatus=4 spot...simple deduction in a different language.

plus the scientic name can change almost as fast as the common names as well. or can have 2 different scientic names depending on who you talk to, they fight and argue over reclassifications and depends on who has accepted the reclass or not.
 
mps9506

mps9506

Well-Known Member
Originally posted by reefjitsu

I was always taught that you should know scientific as well as all the common vernacular names. A funny thing about common and scientific names, 75% of the time they just state the most obvious feature of the fish, the common name using plain words and the scientific using Latin.
Click to expand...

We were taught both, "accepted" common names, and the latin (and you had better know the class, order, family in addition to genus and species). We actually had a little book of accepted common names for the game and food fish of the Southeast. Most species had three or four common names, a few have waaaay more since some fish have different names as juveniles and adults.

As far as the Scientfic names changing, the actual genus and species doesn't always change, sometimes the just change the family or create a new family. There is a concrete set of rules set byu the "holy order of taxonimists" :) that prevent changes to genus species classifications under most circumstances. I don't remember much of it as I hated taxonomy like most of my fellow students at the time, even though I appreciated why we use it.
With pretty much 4 accepted way to define the species concept, fish classification will forever be changing as we research more and more into them.

Mike
 
Craig Manoukian

Craig Manoukian

Well-Known Member
Picasso Trigger Fish, Rhinecanthus assasi

Humuhumunukunukuapua Trigger Fish, Rhinecanthus rectanglus

Not the same fish, eh? Same genus, different species.
 
BoomerD

BoomerD

Well-Known Member
Yep Curt, totally different fish, even though often you will see them listed as the Huma-Huma/Picasso trigger. I argued for almost an hour with a fellow in the LFS one day about that...Even when confronted with the Burgess Marine Fishes book he swore they were the same fish...
 
reefjitsu

reefjitsu

Active Member
It is a fundamental of taxonomy that nature rarely deals with discrete categories. Only the human mind invents categories and tries to force facts into separate pigeonholes. The living world is a continuum in each and every one of its aspects."-- A. Kinsey 1948

:guns: Taxonomy
 
Cartman89

Cartman89

Active Member
Just now found this thread, pretty cool. 10 out of 15. Tells you that I'm not much of a reef fish person huh lol. Now if it was with aggressive fish...
 
reefjitsu

reefjitsu

Active Member
Boomer, LMAO

*note to mods- I tried to use the smilie that points up at the last post and laughs, but every time I hit submit, it changes to this guy :lol: It seems that they have the same code.*
 
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