Deep-Sea taxon details
Acanthuridae Bonaparte, 1835
125515 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:125515)
accepted
Family
Nasinae Fowler & Bean, 1929 · unaccepted
- Subfamily Acanthurinae
- Genus Acanthurus Forsskål, 1775
- Genus Naso Lacepède, 1801
- Subfamily Nasinae Fowler & Bean, 1929 accepted as Acanthuridae Bonaparte, 1835
marine, brackish, fresh, terrestrial
Not documented
Description Circumtropical, especially around coral reefs; five species in the Atlantic, the remaining in the Pacific and Indian...
Description Circumtropical, especially around coral reefs; five species in the Atlantic, the remaining in the Pacific and Indian oceans. All have a deep compressed body with the eye high on the head and a long preorbital bone. Single unnotched dorsal fin with 4-9 spines and 19-33 rays; anal fin with 2 (only Naso) or 3 spines and 18-28 rays; pelvic fins with 1 spine and 3 (Naso and Paracanthurus) or 5 rays. Very small ctenoid scales. A small terminal mouth with a single row of close-set teeth. Most surgeon fishes graze on benthic algae and have a long intestine; some feed mainly on zooplankton or detritus. Surgeon fishes are able to slash other fishes with their sharp caudal spines by a rapid side sweep of the tail. Many species have bright colors and are popular aquarium fishes. [details]
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. (2026). FishBase. Acanthuridae Bonaparte, 1835. Accessed through: Glover, A.G.; Higgs, N.; Horton, T. (2026) World Register of Deep-Sea species (WoRDSS) at: https://www.marinespecies.org/deepsea/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=125515 on 2026-08-04
Glover, A.G.; Higgs, N.; Horton, T. (2026). World Register of Deep-Sea species (WoRDSS). Acanthuridae Bonaparte, 1835. Accessed at: https://www.marinespecies.org/deepsea/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=125515 on 2026-08-04
Date
action
by
taxonomy source
Van Der Laan, R.; Eschmeyer, W. N.; Fricke, R. (2014). Family-group names of Recent fishes. <em>Zootaxa.</em> 3882(1): 1-230., available online at https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1 [details] Available for editors 
context source (PeRMS) Chirichigno, N.; Cornejo, M. (2001). Catálogo comentado de los peces marinos del Perú. <em>2ª ed. Instituto del Mar de Perú. Publicación Especial. Callao.</em> 314 p. [details]
basis of record van der Land, J.; Costello, M.J.; Zavodnik, D.; Santos, R.S.; Porteiro, F.M.; Bailly, N.; Eschmeyer, W.N.; Froese, R. (2001). Pisces, <B><I>in</I></B>: Costello, M.J. <i>et al.</i> (Ed.) (2001). <i>European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels,</i> 50: pp. 357-374 (look up in IMIS) [details]
additional source Fricke, R., Eschmeyer, W. N. & Van der Laan, R. (eds). (2026). ECoF. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes: Genera, Species, References. <em>California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco.</em> Electronic version accessed dd mmm 2026., available online at http://researcharchive.calacademy.org/research/Ichthyology/catalog/fishcatmain.asp [details]
context source (PeRMS) Chirichigno, N.; Cornejo, M. (2001). Catálogo comentado de los peces marinos del Perú. <em>2ª ed. Instituto del Mar de Perú. Publicación Especial. Callao.</em> 314 p. [details]
basis of record van der Land, J.; Costello, M.J.; Zavodnik, D.; Santos, R.S.; Porteiro, F.M.; Bailly, N.; Eschmeyer, W.N.; Froese, R. (2001). Pisces, <B><I>in</I></B>: Costello, M.J. <i>et al.</i> (Ed.) (2001). <i>European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels,</i> 50: pp. 357-374 (look up in IMIS) [details]
additional source Fricke, R., Eschmeyer, W. N. & Van der Laan, R. (eds). (2026). ECoF. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes: Genera, Species, References. <em>California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco.</em> Electronic version accessed dd mmm 2026., available online at http://researcharchive.calacademy.org/research/Ichthyology/catalog/fishcatmain.asp [details]
Present Inaccurate Introduced: alien Containing type locality
Unreviewed
Description Circumtropical, especially around coral reefs; five species in the Atlantic, the remaining in the Pacific and Indian oceans. All have a deep compressed body with the eye high on the head and a long preorbital bone. Single unnotched dorsal fin with 4-9 spines and 19-33 rays; anal fin with 2 (only Naso) or 3 spines and 18-28 rays; pelvic fins with 1 spine and 3 (Naso and Paracanthurus) or 5 rays. Very small ctenoid scales. A small terminal mouth with a single row of close-set teeth. Most surgeon fishes graze on benthic algae and have a long intestine; some feed mainly on zooplankton or detritus. Surgeon fishes are able to slash other fishes with their sharp caudal spines by a rapid side sweep of the tail. Many species have bright colors and are popular aquarium fishes. [details]
To Biological Information System for Marine Life (BISMaL)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Acanthuridae)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Nasinae) (from synonym Nasinae Fowler & Bean, 1929)
To Genbank
To Genbank (from synonym Nasinae Fowler & Bean, 1929)
To NMNH Extant Collection (Acanthuridae FIN026096 Slide 35 mm)
To ITIS
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Acanthuridae)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Nasinae) (from synonym Nasinae Fowler & Bean, 1929)
To Genbank
To Genbank (from synonym Nasinae Fowler & Bean, 1929)
To NMNH Extant Collection (Acanthuridae FIN026096 Slide 35 mm)
To ITIS
Unreviewed
Hosted externally
