West African ladyfish

West African ladyfish
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Elopiformes
Family: Elopidae
Genus: Elops
Species:
E. lacerta
Binomial name
Elops lacerta
Synonyms[1][2]
  • Alloelops lacertus (Valenciennes 1847)
  • Elops congicus Boulenger 1898

The West African ladyfish (Elops lacerate) is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Elopidae. It is native to the coastal waters of the eastern Atlantic Ocean, from Senegal to Angola. It is also known as the Guinean ladyfish. Some have been known to grow to 20 lb (9.1 kg).[3]

Threats

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This species uses estuarine areas and hypersaline lagoons; changes in the quality of these habitats may affect this species' population dynamics. Although this species may not be closely associated with any single habitat, it may be adversely affected by development and urbanization.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Van Der Laan, Richard; Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ronald (11 November 2014). "Family-group names of Recent fishes". Zootaxa. 3882 (1): 1–230. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1. PMID 25543675. S2CID 31014657.
  2. ^ Froese, R.; Pauly, D. (2017). "Elopidae". FishBase version (02/2017). Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  3. ^ Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Elops lacerta". FishBase. May 2006 version.
  4. ^ Adams, A. J., Horodysky, A. Z., McBride, R. S., Guindon, K., Shenker, J., MacDonald, T. C., Harwell, H. D., Ward, R., and Carpenter, K. Global conservation status and research needs for tarpons (Megalopidae), ladyfishes (Elopidae) and bonefishes (Albulidae). Fish and Fisheries (online, early view as of 2013). http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/faf.12017/abstract