Animal Species:Tubemouth, Siphonognathus argyrophanes Richardson, 1858

The Tubemouth is green dorsally, whitish to red-brown below and has a dark lateral stripe. It is endemic to Australia

Head of a Tubemouth

Head of a Tubemouth
David and Leanne Atkinson © David and Leanne Atkinson

Identification

The Tubemouth has a very elongate head and body, with a fleshy barbel extending from the tip of the upper lip. The teeth are mostly fused and beak-like. The low dorsal fin is long-based. The anal fin is shorter and positioned below the rear third of the dorsal fin. The caudal fin is long and pointed. There are no pelvic fins. The Tubemouth is green dorsally, whitish to red-brown below and has a dark lateral stripe.

Size range

The species grows to 45 cm in length.

Distribution

It is endemic to Australia, occurring from Bass Strait, Tasmania to south-western Western Australia.

The map below shows the Australian distribution of the species based on public sightings and specimens in Australian Museums. Click on the map for detailed information.  Source: Atlas of Living Australia.

Siphonognathus argyrophanes

Distribution by collection data

Ozcam map of Tubemouth specimens in the Australian Museum.

What does this mean?

Habitat

The species is most often seen in seagrass beds.

Classification

Species:
argyrophanes
Genus:
Siphonognathus
Family:
Labridae
Order:
Perciformes
Class:
Actinopterygii
Subphylum:
Vertebrata
Phylum:
Chordata
Kingdom:
Animalia

What does this mean?

References

  1. Gomon, M.F. in Gomon, M.F, Glover, C.J.M. & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
  2. Gomon, M.F. & J.R. Paxton. 1985. A revision of the Odacidae, a temperate Australian-New Zealand labroid fish family. Indo-Pacific Fishes. 8: 1-57.
  3. Hoese, D.F., Bray, D.J., Paxton, J.R. & G.R. Allen. 2006. Fishes. In Beesley, P.L. & A. Wells. (eds) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Volume 35. ABRS & CSIRO Publishing: Australia. parts 1-3, pages 1-2178.
  4. Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
  5. Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.


Mark McGrouther , Collection Manager, Ichthyology
Last Updated:

Tags Fishes, Ichthyology, Tubemouth, Siphonognathus argyrophanes, Odacidae, Labridae, green, yellow, brown, grey, long and skinny, 30 cm - 1 m, stripes or bands, countershaded, kelp/algae/seagrass, marine, adult, elongated body,