Zeidae
| True dories | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Mirror dory, Zenopsis nebulosa | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Zeiformes |
| Family: |
Zeidae Latreille, 1825 |
| Genera | |
The Zeidae (named after Zeus, the supreme god of Greek mythology) are a family of large, showy, deep-bodied zeiform marine fish—the "true dories". Found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans, the family contains just six species in two genera. All species are important and highly regarded food fish supporting commercial fisheries, and some—such as the john dory (Zeus faber)—are enjoyed in large public aquaria. These fish are caught primarily by deep-sea trawling.
Several other families have members sharing the common name 'dory', some of which—i.e., those of genera Capromimus, Cyttomimus, and Cyttus—were once placed within the Zeidae. The first two genera are now found within the Zenionidae (or Zeniontidae), and the last genus has been given its own family, Cyttidae.
All dories share the same roughly discoid, laterally compressed body plan. The head is large and sloping to concave in profile; the oblique mouth is also large and in Zenopsis species, it is noticeably upturned. The jaws are massive and highly extensile. The large eyes are situated high on the head and are directed dorsolaterally. There is a perceptible hump in the back beginning just behind the eye; it is topped by a conspicuous, crest-shaped spinous dorsal fin containing 7–10 spines which descend in height towards the posterior. In adults of some species, the dorsal spines are adorned with long, streamer-like filaments. A second, much lower dorsal fin (with 22–37 soft rays) extends down the rest of the back, in a slight retrorse direction due to the body's curvature. The caudal peduncle is thin and the caudal fin is small and truncate (brush-shaped).
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