Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Pleuronectiformes (Flatfishes) >
Cynoglossidae (Tonguefishes) > Symphurinae
Etymology: Symphurus: Greek, syn, symphysis = grown together + Greek, oura = tail (Ref. 45335); leptosomus: Name from Greek 'lepto' meaning slender, and 'somus' for body, referring to its relatively slender, elongate body compared with that other similar species of shallow-water tonguefishes.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; demersal; depth range ? - 15 m (Ref. 126065). Tropical
Western Pacific: Philippines.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 2.4 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 126065)
Dorsal soft rays (total): 88; Anal soft rays: 72; Vertebrae: 47. This species is distinguished from all its congeners by the following set of characters: ID pattern1-2-2-2-2; caudal-fin rays 12; vertebrae, abdominal 9 (3 + 6), total 7; hypurals4; D 88, A 72; longitudinal scale rows 76; transverse scale rows 37; scale rows on head posterior to lower orbit 20; an elongate body, with preanal length much longer than body depth (PAL/BD = 1.09); head moderately long (HL = 23.9% of SL), head length slightly shorter than head width (HW/HL = 1.02); postorbital length short (POL = 65.5% of HL); the upper head lobe larger than lower head lobe; dorsal-fin origin at vertical through midpoint of upper eye; predorsal length moderately long (PDL = 20.4% of HL); snout short (SNL = 16.8% of HL), rounded anteriorly; upper eye slightly in advance of lower eye; fleshy ridge well-developed on posterior part of ocular-side lower jaw, with fleshy membrane covering both upper and lower eyes, and membranous fleshy flap continuous between ocular-side anterior nostril and lower part of eye. Colouration: ocular-side pigmentation uniformly yellow to light-brown with dark-brown irregular speckles and blotches while the blind-side pigmentation is uniformly white, with well-developed pepper-dots and dermal melanophores at bases of dorsal and anal fins; bases of anteriormost dorsal- and anal-fin rays with obvious dermal spots on both sides; peritoneum bluish-black (Ref. 126065).
Cross section: flattened.
A shallow-water tonguefish occurring at depths of ca. 15 m (Ref. 126065).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Lee, M.-Y. and T.A. Munroe, 2021. Unraveling cryptic diversity among shallow-water tonguefishes (Pleuronectiformes: Cynoglossidae: Symphurus) from the Indo-West Pacific region, with descriptions of five new species. Zootaxa 5039(1):1-5.5 (Ref. 126065)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
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