© Baker, J.L. (2009) Marine Species of Conservation Concern in South Australia Full citation Baker, J.L. (2009) Marine Species of Conservation Concern in South Australia: Volume 1 - Bony and Cartilaginous Fishes. Report for the South Australian Working Group for Marine Species of Conservation Concern. J. Baker (consultant); Science and Conservation Division, and Coast and Marine Conservation branches of S.A. Department for Environment and Heritage (DEH); Marine and Coastal Community Network of S.A. (MCCN), and Threatened Species Network (TSN). Web version published by Reef Watch, South Australia.

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APOGONIDAE: CARDINALFISHES

Photo: © John Lewis

The Apogonidae family is a large one, with at least 337 species known globally (Froese and Pauly, 2007), not including species of Epigonus, the genus of large-eyed, deeper water cardinalfishes, which some taxonomists now assign to a separate family, the Epigonidae.
The Apogonidae includes the shallow water cardinalfishes (e.g. species of Apogon, Archamia, Gymapogon, Pseudamia, Vincentia and other genera); the mouth almighty fishes (species of Glossamia), and the siphonfishes (species of Siphaemia, or Siphamia), amongst others. Most shallow water cardinalfishes have a tropical distribution (Gomon, in Gomon et al., 1994; Allen, 1999); however a number of species occur in southern Australia, particularly those in the genus Vincentia.
Cardinalfishes are mostly small (to 20cm, usually less than 12cm), ovate to elongate, with a moderately compressed body, usually large scales, two separate dorsal fins, large eyes (diameter exceeding snout length), double-edged cheek margin, and a large mouth (Allen, 1999). The colour of cardinalfishes is highly variable (frequently shades of black, brown, red, or yellow), with many species exhibiting a pattern of dark bars or stripes on a lighter ground colour (Allen, 1999).
Over the distribution, cardinalfishes inhabit coral and rocky reefs, and adjacent habitats including sand-rubble patches and seagrass beds. Most occur in marine waters; however the genus Glossamia of tropical Australia and New Guinea is found in fresh waters. In the tropics, several species frequently shelter among the spines of sea urchins (usually Diadema) or Crown-of-thorns Starfish (Acanthaster) (Allen, 1999). Most species of cardinalfish are nocturnal (Nelson, 1994; Gomon, in Gomon, 1994), and feed on zooplankton and small benthic invertebrates (Nelson, 1994, cited in Froese and Pauly, 2007). Cardinalfishes are among the few marine fishes in which the males brood the eggs orally (Allen, 1999).
Some of the tropical Australian and Indonesian species are used in the aquarium trade (and some of these are very highly priced) and species of Rhabdamia are occasionally used as tuna bait (Allen, 1999). In Western Australia, tropical, sub-tropical and temperate species in the Apogonidae are collected in W.A. for the aquarium trade (e.g. Department of Fisheries, W.A., 2004b).
In southern Australia, cardinalfish are not sought by commercial or recreational fishers, but various species are a significant part of the discarded bycatch in some fisheries. Most of the deepwater cardinalfish species have now been assigned to separate families (e.g. Acropomatidae and Epigonidae), but are still recorded as Apogonidae fishes in bycatch data of Commonwealth-managed fisheries. For example, in the otter trawl sub-fishery of the South East Trawl Fishery (SETF), an Integrated Scientific Monitoring Program (ISMP) reported that in 415 trawl shots, about 531kg of unspecified cardinalfishes were retained and 7.6 tonnes were discarded (Wayte et al., 2004), equivalent to about 18kg per trawl shot discarded. Species discarded in the SETF include Three-spined Cardinalfish Apogonops anomalus (a significant part of the diet of the Gemfish Rexea solandri), and species of Epigonus, such as White Deepsea Cardinalfish and Robust Deepsea Cardinalfish, amongst others. In the otter trawl sub-fishery of the SETF, the ISMP recorded about 8 tonnes of Three-spined Cardinalfish in the discards from 295 trawl shots (Wayte et al., 2004), equivalent to 27kg per trawl shot, discarded. Outer shelf cardinalfishes such as Apogonops anomalus are also part of the discarded bycatch in the Great Australian Bight Trawl fishery (Brown and Knuckey, 2002).
In South Australia, observers have reported shallow water cardinalfish as part of the bycatch in the Gulf St Vincent prawn fishery (Richardson, 1999), and at least 2 cardinalfish species are a minor part of the bycatch in the Spencer Gulf prawn trawl fishery (Carrick, 1997).
One of the most widespread Australian species of shallow water cardinalfish is the tropical and sub-tropical Gobbleguts Apogon rueppellii, which is found as far south as Albany in southwestern W.A., but does not occur in South Australia. Of the shallow water species, those found in South Australia include the following (Hutchins and Swainston, 1986, 2001; Gomon, in Gomon et al., 1994; Kuiter, 1996a; Edgar, 2000):
* Wood’s Siphonfish Siphaemia cephalotes, which has a wide distribution from southern Queensland, around the south coast to southern Western Australia. S. cephalotes is found in estuarine seagrass beds, and also offshore areas, in various parts of South Australia. In Victoria, it is commonly recorded at locations such as Western Port Bay and Corner Inlet; and * members of the southern Australian endemic genus Vincentia (shallow water Cardinalfish). In South Australia, Vincentia species include V. macrocauda, V. badia, and V. conspersa.
The Orange Cardinalfish V. punctata is known from south-western W.A. (Hutchins and Thompson, 1983, Hutchins and Swainston, 1986; B. Hutchins, W.A. museum, pers. comm., 2006). It is closely related to V. badia, and sometimes mistaken for that species, as indicated by several older museum specimens, as well as incorrectly identified survey data from South Australia. No verified specimens of V. punctata have yet been found in S.A. (B. Hutchins, W.A. Museum, and M. Gomon, Museum of Victoria, pers. comm., 2006) but, according to B. Hutchins (W.A. Museum, pers. comm., 2006), there is the possibility of transients infrequently reaching the eastern side of the Great Australian Bight. However, it is noted that the benthic, site-specific nature of reproduction in this group would reduce the opportunity for populations to establish outside of the range.

Associated taxa

Scarlet Cardinalfish	Vincentia badia Allen, 1987
Smooth Cardinalfish	Vincentia macrocauda Allen, 1987
Southern Cardinalfish / Southern Gobbleguts	Vincentia conspersa (Klunzinger, 1872)