Repomucenus calcaratus
Spotted Dragonet
Distribution
Temperate Australasia
Description
Less colourful than most other dragonets, the species has a flecked, sand-coloured upper surface and pale belly. The most distinctive feature is a black patch on the first dorsal fin. The species is moderately common in coastal bays near reef margins in New South Wales, but is apparently restricted to depths below 20 m elsewhere. The distribution of this species is somewhat uncertain, because records from southwestern Australia possibly relate to a similar but different species.
Information
Max Size: 22 cm
Sea Temperature Range: 16.4-25.5°C
Depth: 5-100m
Habitat Generalization Index: N/A
Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.
Conservation and Rarity
IUCN Status: Not Evaluated
Occurrence: Infrequent (1.6% of sites)
Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
Abundance: Few (3 per transect)
Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.
Edit by: GJ Edgar. 2008. Australian Marine Life. New Holland, Sydney