Maldives Marine Life

Marine life of Maldivian waters

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Longspine cardinalfish
No photo available
Photo: David Starr Jordan / Alvin Seale / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain (view on Wikimedia Commons)Historical illustration. Source: Jordan, David Starr; Seale, Alvin (1906) Fishes of Samoa : Description of the Species Found in the Archipelago, with a Provisional Check-List of the Fishes of O; Commons file: FMIB 39621 Amia doryssa Jordan & Seale, new speices Type.jpeg

Longspine cardinalfish

Apogon doryssa

Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).

English
Longspine cardinalfish
Scientific
Apogon doryssa
Dhivehi
No recorded Dhivehi name
Group
Reef fish
Family
Apogonidae (cardinalfishes)
Maximum size
Up to about 8 cm (total length); commonly 4 cm
Depth and habitat
Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 4 to 21 m
IUCN status
LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2021

Description

A small, deep-bodied cardinalfish with a long dorsal spine, reaching about 8 cm. It is solitary and secretive, usually seen only at night on sheltered reefs.

Sources

Dhivehi name source: No Dhivehi name found in MRS 1997 (available chapters), FishBase (country: Maldives) or Dhivehi Wikipedia.