United States or Nepal ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
It has been known, however, to all the old ichthyologists, Valentyn, Renard, Seba, Artedi, and has been named Chætodon lineatus, by Linné. Of these richly coloured fishes the most familiar in the Indian seas are the Pteroids. They are well known on the coast of Africa, and thence eastward to Polynesia; but they do not extend to the west coast of America, and are utterly absent from the Atlantic.
The rays of the dorsal and pectoral fins are so elongated, that when specimens were first brought to Europe it was conjectured that these fishes have the faculty of flight, and hence the specific name of "volitans" But this is an error, for, owing to the deep incisions between the pectoral rays, the pteroids are wholly unable to sustain themselves in the air.
Word Of The Day