Checklist of the marine and estuarine fishes of New Ireland Province, Papua New Guinea, western Pacific Ocean, with 810 new records
Author
Andréfouët, Serge
Author
Chen, Wei-Jen
Author
Kinch, Jeff
Author
Mana, Ralph
Author
Russell, Barry C.
Author
Tully, Dean
Author
White, William T.
text
Zootaxa
2019
2019-04-23
4588
1
1
360
journal article
26780
10.11646/zootaxa.4588.1.1
8bb17a01-6ca6-4225-a42c-be3cb22e3db0
1175-5326
2988163
C7390B16-569F-46A2-A823-0018E1934873
Novaculichthys taeniourus
(Lacepède [ex Commerson] 1801)—Rockmover wrasse
Status at
New Ireland
.
First recorded from
New Ireland
as
Novacula (Novaculichthys) taeniura
by
Peters (1877
: 843); reported from San Mathias as
Novacula taeniurus
by
Duncker & Mohr (1929
: 68). ZMH material.
2 specimens
photographed at Lissenung Island, Kavieng District,
10 m
depth, by Dean Tully on
18 Sept. 2012
; a video of a specimen taken off southeastern New Hanover, at
6–21 m
depth, St. KR124, in 2014 (identified by Barry C. Russell).
Distribution and habitat.
New Ireland
: 1, 2, 4.—General distribution: Red Sea, East Africa and KwaZulu- Natal (
South Africa
),
Madagascar
and Mascarenes east to
Panama
, north to southern
Japan
and Hawaiian Islands, south to Lord Howe, Norfolk and Tuamotu islands. Found in semi-exposed reef flats and lagoon and seaward coral reefs; common in areas of mixed sand, and rubble that are subject to mild surge; juveniles shallow on rubble amongst large bommies or protected open patches on reef crests and swim as if were a leaf floating along the bottom; large adults move along over large reef section, solitary or in pairs and typically turn or shift large pieces of rubble or debris,
1–25 m
depth. Marine.