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Wildlife of Sydney
- Wildlife of Sydney
- Habitats of Sydney
- Crustaceans
- Lace corals and sea mats
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- Frogs: Class Amphibia
- Bleating Tree Frog
- Brown Toadlet
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- Haswell's Froglet
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- Red-crowned Toadlet
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- Striped Marsh Frog
- Spotted Marsh Frog
- Tusked Frog
- Tyler's Toadlet
- Verreaux's Tree Frog
- Insects
- Ant-raiding Ant
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- Australian Painted Lady
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- Caper White Butterfly
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- Mammals
- Mammals: Mammalia
- Australian Fur Seal
- Black Rat
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- Common Ringtail Possum
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- Freshwater fish
- Sharks and rays
- Common Stingaree, Trygonoptera testacea Müller & Henle, 1841
- Eastern Shovelnose Ray, Aptychotrema rostrata (Shaw & Nodder, 1794)
- Greynurse Shark, Carcharias taurus Rafinesque, 1810
- Port Jackson Shark, Heterodontus portusjacksoni (Meyer, 1793)
- Spotted Wobbegong, Orectolobus maculatus (Bonnaterre, 1788)
- White Shark, Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Marine fishes
- Australian Mado, Atypichthys strigatus Günther, 1860
- Bigbelly Seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis Lesson, 1827
- Blacktip Bullseye at South Solitary Island
- Eastern Blue Devil, Paraplesiops bleekeri
- Eastern Blue Groper, Achoerodus viridis (Steindachner, 1866)
- Eastern Frogfish, Batrachomoeus dubius (White, 1790)
- Eastern Wirrah, Acanthistius ocellatus (Günther, 1859)
- Fanbelly Leatherjacket, Monacanthus chinensis (Isbeck, 1765)
- Fortescue, Centropogon australis (White, 1790)
- John Dory, Zeus faber Linnaeus, 1758
- Luderick, Girella tricuspidata (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824)
- Mulloway, Argyrosomus japonicus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1844)
- Old Wife, Enoplosus armatus (White, 1790)
- Peppered Sole, Aseraggodes sp
- Pineapplefish, Cleidopus gloriamaris De Vis, 1882
- Red Indian Fish, Pataecus fronto Richardson, 1844
- Red Morwong, Cheilodactylus fuscus (Castelnau, 1879)
- Red Rockcod, Scorpaena cardinalis Richardson, 1842
- Sand Whiting, Sillago ciliata Cuvier, 1829
- Sergeant Baker, Hime purpurissatus Richardson, 1843
- Silver Biddy, Gerres subfasciatus (Cuvier, 1830)
- Snapper, Pagrus auratus
- Sydney Cardinalfish, Apogon limenus (Randall & Hoese, 1988)
- Trumpetfish, Aulostomus chinensis (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Weedy Seadragon, Phyllopteryx taeniolatus (Lacépède, 1804)
- White's Seahorse, Hippocampus whitei Bleeker, 1855
- Molluscs
- Overview of molluscs - Phylum Mollusca
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ANIMAL SPECIES:Red Morwong, Cheilodactylus fuscus (Castelnau, 1879)
The Red Morwong is common in coastal New South Wales waters, where it is seen regularly by divers.
Identification
The Red Morwong can be recognised by its colouration and extended lower pectoral fin rays. Adults are orange-brown to dark brown above and pale below. Small juveniles are silvery with dark bands crossing the upper sides and dorsal fin.
Adults have large fleshy lips and a forked caudal fin. There are horn-like bumps in front of the eyes.
The Red Morwong occasionally has a banded pattern and looks similar to the Banded Morwong. The lack of bumps on the front of the head in the Banded Morwong can be used to separate the two species.
Size range
It grows to 65 cm in length.Distribution
The Red Morwong occurs in warm temperate waters of Australia and New Zealand. In Australia it is known from southern Queensland to eastern Victoria. It is common in New South Wales.
Distribution by collection data
Biomaps map of Red Morwong specimens in the Australian Museum collection.
Habitat
Adults are usually seen in aggregations on rocky reefs to about 30 m in depth. Juveniles live on algae covered reefs.
Classification
- Species:
- fuscus
- Genus:
- Cheilodactylus
- Family:
- Cheilodactylidae
- Order:
- Perciformes
- Class:
- Actinopterygii
- Subphylum:
- Vertebrata
- Phylum:
- Chordata
- Kingdom:
- Animalia
References
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
- Kuiter, R.H. in Gomon, M.F., J.C.M. Glover & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
Mark McGrouther
, Collection Manager, Ichthyology
Last Updated: 7 July 2009
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