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Duncker's Pipehorse
Solegnathus dunckeri Whitley, 1927
Head of a 450 mm long Duncker's Pipehorse found by S. Wilson and M. Thomson, on the surface, off Erscotts Passage, Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, July 2001. Photo: C. Bento © Australian Museum. View larger image.
Dorsal view of the fish pictured above, showing the distinctive colour pattern. Photo © R. Schultz. View larger image.
Lateral view of the above fish. The specimen is now registered in the Australian Museum Fish Collection (AMS I.40949-001). Photo © R. Schultz. View larger image.
Duncker's Pipehorse can be distinguished from the other Indo-Pacific species of Solegnathus by its body structure and colouration. The upper (superior) ridges of the body have dark stripes and are continuous with the ridges on the tail. The underside of the tail rings are dusky to black.
Duncker's Pipehorse is usually seen washed up on beaches or trawled from marine waters at depths between 30 m and 140m.
It is endemic to eastern Australia, occurring from southern Queensland to the central New South Wales coast and Lord Howe Island.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
The species was described in 1927 by Australian Museum Fish Curator G.P. Whitley.
Related links
- Spiny Pipehorse fact sheet
- View the family Syngnathidae list
- View the Pipefishes and Pipehorses list
Further reading
- Allen, G.R., D.F. Hoese, J.R. Paxton, J.E. Randall, B.C. Russell, W.A. Starck, F.H. Talbot & GP Whitley. l976. An annotated checklist of the fishes of Lord Howe Island. Records of the Australian Museum, 30 (15):365-454.
- Dawson, C.E. 1985. Indo-Pacific Pipefishes (Red Sea to the Americas). The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory. Pp. 230.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Seahorses, Pipefishes and their Relatives. A Comprehensive Guide to Syngnathiformes. TMC Publishing Pp. 240.
