#rabbitfish

[i-give-you-a-fish]

Can you give me the fish fish? Like really fish

You get a Rivulated Rabbitfish

Siganus rivulatus

[1-fish-a-day]

Your daily fish #79

Foxface rabbitfish - Siganus vulpinus

Watch out! They are venomous!

They can get spiky when threatened, raising their spines and inflicting a painful wound.

They are thought to be monogamous, mating for life with one partner. They are herbivore and feed on algae and coral and they grow up to a maximum of 30 cm.

Ypu can find them in the indo-pacific region, around Australian and the Philippines.

I love the bright yellow and their faces!

[fishstims]

big.blue.sea on instagram

[pochqmqri]

Blotched foxface at the Downtown Aquarium in Houston, TX

[philippinewildlifeart]

Say hello to some of our “rabbits of the sea” - rabbitfish!

Best known to us as buwad or daing, danggit (Bisaya) is an affordable and ancient ingredient harnessed for dried fish. Also known as samaral (Tagalog), kuyug (Batangueño), and kitong (Cebuano), they are not only one of our favorite fish to eat, they themselves love eating plants!

They are known as the ocean’s herbivores (van Beijnen, Yan 2019). Depending on the species and age, they eat different kinds of “vegetables” in the sea, from algae to seagrass (Fishbase). They also help control algae growth in our coral reefs (Mayuga 2023).

There are 28 known species of rabbitfish (FAO), all of them in the genus Siganus. The term “rabbitfish” goes back to the early 19th century in England (OEM), probably because the faces of danggit reminded them of rabbits in their country (though I have yet to confirm this).

Featured here is Badlit or Suwat Binisaya once again, for danggit!

References

Jonah van Beijnen and Gregg Yan 2019 - How a Filipino scientist is making headlines by culturing marine herbivores https://thefishsite.com/articles/how-a-filipino-scientist-is-making-headlines-by-culturing-marine-herbivores

Fishbase - Siganus fuscescens (Houttuyn, 1782) Mottled spinefoot https://www.fishbase.se/summary/siganus-fuscescens.html

Jonathan L. Mayuga, April 1, 2023 - ‘Kuyug’: Calatagan’s famous fish. https://businessmirror.com.ph/2023/04/01/kuyug-calatagans-famous-fish/

FAO. Rabbitfish farming in Asia. https://www.academia.edu/84005560/Rabbitfish_Farming_in_Asia_UN_FAO_2022_?auto=download

Oxford English Dictionary (OEM) - Rabbitfish etymology https://www.oed.com/dictionary/rabbitfish_n?tl=true

[mouserrouser]

Mermay 16: BeachGoth

Etretie Aniscah, a sea god of the night, the stars, and eel-fish (chimera). They are one of the gods of the Divine Circle, an Anazahgrat pantheon of the Greater Coalition.

[waytoocrispybread]

guy who is definitely a fish and not a robot ↓

[lampfacedstudios]

For the first time since 2017, Ponzu finally has a proper reference sheet!

I’ve decided over the years that she’s an ambassador from her deep-water realm to the inland domain. She’s based on a Chimaera monstrosa, aka rabbitfish or ratfish, and they regularly swim into shallower waters at night, so I figured by extension she’s more suited than some of her fellows to be doing ambassador work. Her formal wear reflects her status as an ambassador, fancier than the average citizen but distinct from royal garb in color and adornments. She doesn’t like to be dressed up if she doesn’t have to be.

Outside of the professional setting, Ponzu is very introverted. In her realm, she’s “normal”, or rather there’s enough variation amongst everyone that she doesn’t feel too outlandish. In the inland domain, she sticks out amongst the zora with all their brighter colors and their more uniform morphology. The idea of being perceived when not on her own terms is off-putting for her.

Ponzu is almost like a cryptid when she’s out and about in the inland domain - often goes out in the dead of night (she’s also very nocturnal, doesn’t like to be up during the day too much, the light can be hard on her eyes) to do her own thing, and with how extremely reflective her eyes are all you might see is a vague dark shape and glowing eyes in the distance if you spot her.

She and Sidon originally bonded from a diplomatic perspective, getting to know the other’s cultures and differences and similarities, but as time went things got a little more involved. More than a little. She’s a little shy about their relationship on a public level as she’s not royalty, and is a little intimidated by his fan-club, but Sidon doesn’t care at all and will happily parade around with her. He does his best to respect her comfort levels though.