Cosmocampus albirostris
Whitenose Pipefish
Collection Details
Specimens
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Gasterosteiformes (Sticklebacks and relatives)
Syngnathidae (Pipefishes)
Cosmocampus
Cosmocampus albirostris (Whitenose Pipefish)
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
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Characters
Slender and elongate, with a supraopercular ridge and a relatively short, deep snout. Head length is 9.5% to 13.9% of SL, snout length is 35.7% to 45.5% of head length, and snout depth is 25% to 38.5% of snout length. Depth at anal ring is 22.2% to 52.6%, and trunk depth is 32.3% to 66.7% of head length. Pectoral fin has 11 to 15 rays. Dorsal fin extends over 0 to 2 trunk rings and 3.5 to 5.75 tail rings, and has 21 to 25 rays. Anal fin has 2 to 4 rays, and caudal fin has 10 rays. Trunk rings number 16 to 18, and tail rings number 25 to 31. Principal body ridges are prominent. Superior trunk and tail ridges are discontinuous near dorsal fin insertion. Inferior trunk and tail ridges are continuous. Lateral trunk and tail ridges are discontinuous below dorsal fin base. Brood pouch is located below 12 to 20 tail rings. Pouch plates are well developed.
Color is white to brownish. Snout is white or unpigmented, and occasionally body has irregular tan and dark brown bands.
Distribution
Western Atlantic from Bermuda and South Carolina to northern South America, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
Habitat Associations
To 50 m
Biology
Maximum known size is 208 mm SL
Coastal species (Ref. 26938), found in seagrass beds. A cryptic species. Avoids areas with lowered salinity (Ref. 26938). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 205). The male carries the eggs in a brood pouch which is found under the tail (Ref. 205).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: in brood pouch or similar structure; bearers (external brooders); parental care: paternal. Male carries the eggs in a brood pouch (Ref. 205).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2014-01-10. Resilience: High (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Phylogeny and Morphologically Similar Fishes
Distinguished from other species of the family by the combination of characters described
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: of no interest.
References
Bohlke and Chaplin 1968 (as Corythoichthys albirostris)
Dawson 1982
C. R. Robins et al. 1986
Boschung 1992
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray (1986) A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p.
Smith, C.L. (1997) National Audubon Society field guide to tropical marine fishes of the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York. 720 p.
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