Skip to main content

Milkfish

Chanos chanos
Meet the Milkfish, an interesting creature that can be found off of the coasts and in the reefs of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. They are also a national symbol in the Philippines.

What makes the Milkfish so interesting? Well, for one, they are the only living member of their entire family, and are one of only a few species living within their entire order that dates back to the Cretaceous! Secondly, they have no teeth. Despite the fact that they can grow to lengths of up to 5ft, they feed only on algae and very small invertebrates.

Milkfish are referred to as Bangus in the Philippines, and the farming of these fish has been an industry there for around six hundred years! China, Taiwan, and Indonesia have also been commercially raising the fish for centuries, and each country has it's own method for handling the nurseries, the raising of the fish, and the harvesting.
IUCN Status : Not Listed
Location : Indian and Pacific Oceams
Size : Length up to 5ft (1.5m)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Actinopterygii -- Order : Gonorynchiformes
Family : Chanidae -- Genus : Chanos -- Species : C. chanos
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a
59 comments
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more

Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws! Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km)  from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be! While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long! Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills. IUCN Status :  Not Listed Location :   Cent
Post a Comment
Read more