Rudie Hermann Kuiter, Aquatic Photographics, Australien
Info
Vanacampus vercoi is a rarely occurring pipefish found only in South Australia.
The body of the pipefish is brownish with 4 - 6 light narrow stripes on the back and a dark stripe on the front of each body ring.7
Pale spots or stripes are often seen on the lower part of the gill cover.
Vanacampus vercoi inhabits shallow subtidal macroalgae and seagrass beds (Posidonia and Zostera), tide pools, intertidal channels, and boulder habitats where the pipefish feeds on small crustaceans found on the substrate and among algae and seagrass leaves.
Mysidacea are an important food source for juveniles
Vanacampus verco is ovoviviparous (gives birth to live young); eggs are hatched by males in a closed pouch on the underside of the tail just behind the anal fin.
The body rings are present at an early stage, and the anal fin is reduced.
Verco's Seendel has a shorter snout, fewer proboscis rings, and fewer subdorsal rings than other species in the genus Vanacampus.
It can also be confused with two other short-nosed species: Kaupus costatus and Pugnaso curtirostris.
Vanacampus vercoi has fewer dorsal fin rays than Kaupus costatus (19-21 versus 30-36) and differs from Pugnaso curtirostris in having fewer proboscis rings (16 versus 18) and a complete opercular crest.
The species is named after the Australian biologist and malacologist Joseph Verco (1851-1933).
Synonyms:
Corythoichthys flindersi Scott, 1957.
Syngnathus vercoi Waite & Hale, 1921
The body of the pipefish is brownish with 4 - 6 light narrow stripes on the back and a dark stripe on the front of each body ring.7
Pale spots or stripes are often seen on the lower part of the gill cover.
Vanacampus vercoi inhabits shallow subtidal macroalgae and seagrass beds (Posidonia and Zostera), tide pools, intertidal channels, and boulder habitats where the pipefish feeds on small crustaceans found on the substrate and among algae and seagrass leaves.
Mysidacea are an important food source for juveniles
Vanacampus verco is ovoviviparous (gives birth to live young); eggs are hatched by males in a closed pouch on the underside of the tail just behind the anal fin.
The body rings are present at an early stage, and the anal fin is reduced.
Verco's Seendel has a shorter snout, fewer proboscis rings, and fewer subdorsal rings than other species in the genus Vanacampus.
It can also be confused with two other short-nosed species: Kaupus costatus and Pugnaso curtirostris.
Vanacampus vercoi has fewer dorsal fin rays than Kaupus costatus (19-21 versus 30-36) and differs from Pugnaso curtirostris in having fewer proboscis rings (16 versus 18) and a complete opercular crest.
The species is named after the Australian biologist and malacologist Joseph Verco (1851-1933).
Synonyms:
Corythoichthys flindersi Scott, 1957.
Syngnathus vercoi Waite & Hale, 1921
