Editing Monocentridae

{{Short description|Family of fishes}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Pinecone fishes
| image = pineconefish.png
| image_caption = Pinecone fish, ''[[Monocentris japonica]]''
| taxon = Monocentridae
| authority = [[Theodore Gill|T. N. Gill]], 1859
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision_ref = <ref>{{FishBase family | family = Monocentridae| month = October | year = 2012}}</ref>
| subdivision = 
''[[Cleidopus]]''<br/>
''[[Monocentris]]''
}}
[[Image:Monocentris japonica.jpg|thumb|250px|''Monocentris japonica'']]

'''Pinecone fishes''' are small and unusual marine [[fish]] of the [[family (biology)|family]] '''Monocentridae'''. The family contains just five [[species]] in two [[genus|genera]], one of which is [[monotypic]]. Their distribution is limited to tropical and subtropical waters of the [[Indo-Pacific]]. Pinecone fishes are popular subjects of public aquaria, but are both expensive and considered a challenge for the hobbyist to maintain.

== Description ==
These fish are aptly named; their rounded, compressed bodies are completely covered (with the exception of the [[caudal peduncle]]) with very large, strong, platelike [[scale (zoology)|scale]]s called scutes, which are fortified with prominent ridges.<ref name=EoF>{{cite book |editor=Paxton, J.R. |editor2=Eschmeyer, W.N.|author= Paxton, John R.|year=1998|title=Encyclopedia of Fishes|publisher= Academic Press|location=San Diego|pages= 161–162|isbn= 0-12-547665-5}}</ref> The first [[dorsal fin]] is composed of four to seven strong, disunited spines which vary in length; the second dorsal fin and [[anal fin]] are small, spineless and rounded, situated far back of the convex head. The [[pectoral fin]]s are somewhat elongate and the [[caudal fin]] is truncate.

Coloration is typically a yellow to orange, with the scales dramatically outlined in black. The eyes are relatively large, and the mouth is oblique and subterminal. On either side of the lower jaw is a [[bioluminescence|bioluminescent]] organ called a [[photophore]]: a pale light is produced by [[symbiosis|symbiotic]] [[bacterium|bacteria]] within the organ,<ref name=EoF/> and the color of the light varies with ambient light levels&mdash;orange by day and blue-green at night.

The [[pineapplefish]], ''Cleidopus gloriamaris'', is the largest species, reaching up to {{convert|30|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length.<ref name=EoF/> [[Sexual dimorphism]] is not apparent.

== Life history ==
Pinecone fishes inhabit the sublittoral zone, and are associated with ledges and caves, rocky and (occasionally) [[coral reef]]s over a hard bottom. Found at 10&ndash;200 m deep (with juveniles frequenting the shallower end of this range), pinecone fishes are [[nocturnal]] and form schools.

The photophores are thought to play a role in attracting the [[zooplankton]] upon which the fish feed; intraspecific communication may also be a use for the light.<ref name=EoF/> Little is known of their reproductive biology, but they are assumed not to guard their brood.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q1550938}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Monocentridae| ]]
[[Category:Bioluminescent fish]]
[[Category:Euteleostei families]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Theodore Gill]]