| Nibea | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Illustrated plate ofNibea soldado byGeorge Henry Ford. | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Acanthuriformes |
| Family: | Sciaenidae |
| Genus: | Nibea Jordan &Thompson, 1911 |
| Type species | |
| Pseudotolithus mitsukurii Jordan &Snyder, 1900 | |
| Species | |
See text | |
Nibea is agenus of marineray-finned fishes belonging to thefamilySciaenidae, the drums and croakers. The species in this genus are found in theIndo-West Pacific region.
Nibea was first proposed as a genus in 1911 by the AmericanichthyologistsDavid Starr Jordan &William Francis Thompson withPseudotolithus mitsukurii designated as itstype species.[1] P. mitsukurii had originally beendescribed in 1900 by Jordan andJohn Otterbein Snyder with itstype locality given asTokyo Bay, Japan.[2] This taxon has been placed in thesubfamily Otolithinae by some workers,[3] but the 5th edition ofFishes of the World does not recognise subfamilies within the Sciaenidae which it places in theorderAcanthuriformes.[4]
Nibea is derived from a Japanese word referring to large Sciaenids and for theisinglass, manufactured from theirswim bladders, used in bindingbamboo rods together.[5]
Nibea contains ten accepted species:[6]
Nibea croakers have the first pair of pores on the chin set closely together, immediately to the rear of thesymphysis of the lower jaw, and connected by a crescent-shaped groove. The teeth in the lower jaw are not uniform in size. The swim bladder has a shape like a carrot and has branched appendages along the whole of both its sides and the most forward of these goes through thetransverse septum.[7] The type species is the largest member of the genus, with a maximum publishedstandard length of 75 cm (30 in) while the smallscale croaker (N. leptolepis) with a maximum published standard length of 22 cm (8.7 in) is the smallest member.[6]
Nibea croakers are found in the Indo-Pacific region from Pakistan[7] east to New Guinea, south to Australia and north to Japan.[6]