Black dotted sandperch
Parapercis millepunctata
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Black dotted sandperch
- Scientific
- Parapercis millepunctata
- Dhivehi
- މުށިތިކި އަލަތަނޑުMushi thiki alathandu
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 18 cm (total length); max. published weight 41.92 g (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives max. 20 cm
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 3 to 50 m
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2022
Description
A small, whitish sandperch with rows of brown spots, the lowest rows large and vertically elongate, and a white spot in the middle of the tail. It perches on rubble and pavement between corals on seaward reefs, feeding on crustaceans and small fish.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name mushi thiki alathandu (MRS 1997). MRS notes it is the commonest member of its genus at many localities.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Parapercis-millepunctata.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/މުށިތިކި_އަލަތަނޑު
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Arenal_(Parapercis_millepunctata),_Anilao,_Filipinas,_2023-
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Mushi thiki alathandu' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'މުށިތިކި އަލަތަނޑު' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FLAG: the source states no traditional name was recorded and this descriptive name was coined for the book; it is not an established fishermen's name.