Author: Rüppell, 1852
Microichthys coccoi Rüppell, 1852
Status in World Register of Marine Species:
Accepted name: Microichthys coccoi Rüppell, 1852 (updated 2009-06-25)
Diagnosis: body compressed, its upper profile suddenly bent before first dorsal fin. Head large, opercle with a spine; mouth large, oblique; lower jaw prominent; teeth minute, only anteriorly on jaws. Dl VII; D2 I + 9-10; A II + 8-9; P 16; V 1 + 5, not reaching the anal fin. Scales about as long as high. Colour: purplish-blue; about 20 transverse black lines on sides; melanophores numerous, chiefly on caudal peduncle; pelvic fins distally dark. Size: about 3 cm SL.
Habitat: probably pelagic. Food: very few data. Reproduction: very few data .
Distribution: known only from the Strait of Messina (Sicily). However, Kofoed (1952: 1, pl. IIA) figured and briefly described some young 'Epigonus telescopus' from the North Atlantic, which appear to be referable to M. coccoi.
Eggs, larvae and young stages. Gonzales, 1946: 39-46, fig. 1-7.
Otoliths (sagitta). No data.