Familia Pomacentridae

Pomacentridae

by J.-P. Quignard and A. Pras

Body oval, deep, laterally flattened. Head short, obtuse. Single nostril on each side. Mouth small, protractile. Jaws with small teeth, caninelike or incisors; none on palate and tongue. Lower pharyngeal bones fused, upper separate, all dentigerous. Gill membrane free from isthmus. Ctenoid scales, lateral line in two parts. Single dorsal and anal fins, divided into a spiny and segmented part, their base scaly; anal spines 2. More or less brilliant colours.
Littoral, mainly on rocky reefs and in tide pools. Often in small shoals.

Genera 25; in Clofnam area 2.

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