Southern Gulf Pipefish

This species differs from its congeners having an indistinct trunk and tail ridges, particularly lateral trunk ridge, in fresh specimens; the lateral trunk ridge terminates 1.5 body rings posterior to anal ring; short, wide and slightly elevated snout; 9 sub-dorsal tail rings; distinctbanded pattern in both live and preserved specimens (Ref. 75062).Description: In juveniles, the opercular ridge longitudinal and angled little dorsally, is prominent, but reduced in adults; brood pouch under the anterior portion of tail, extends for 15 to 18 rings from anal ring; pouch plates absent or vestigial, brood protected by well-developed pouch folds which develop from the inferior tail ridges and touch or overlap at ventral midline within length of 1 ring. Females lack dorso-ventral compression (Ref. 75062).

Male carries the eggs in a brood pouch (Ref. 205).

All specimens were collected or photographed in sheltered shallow open water at 1-5 m depth over a substrate of a mosaic of patches of brown algae, with Posidonia or Zostera. It appears to have a very limited inshore distribution along patches of moderate energy coastlines with low turbidity and a broken vegetation pattern of seagrass and brown algae. The restricted inshore habitat may be particularly vulnerable to pollutants or exotic marine species. The eggs of this species are deposited in two layers, a basal and then an external layer. A specimen with the greatest recorded number of eggs had 3 staggered rows of 64 basal membranous egg compartments on the tail, with the basal layer of eggs covered by a membrane with matching rows of egg pouches; the second layer with 34 eggs within the brood pouch folds resulted in a total of 98 eggs. Total lengths of larvae at hatching is 1.8 cm (vs. 1.3 cm in S. nigra and 3.2 cm in S. argus. Males of this species have extended broodpatches from December to March, and juveniles < 9.0 cm are seen from December to March. Males also can mature at 11.3 cm. The maximum recorded brood was 98 eggs which was far greater than that recorded by for S. nigra which is approximately 25 and for S. argus with 41 eggs (Ref. 75062).

Stigmatopora narinosa, also known as the Southern Gulf pipefish is a species of marine fish belonging to the family Syngnathidae. The species can be found in patches of seagrass and algae in the shallow waters of Spencer Gulf and the Gulf St. Vincent, South Australia. Their diet likely consists of small crustaceans such as copepods and amphipods. Adult males have been measured at lengths up to 11.3 centimeters. Reproduction occurs through ovoviviparity in which the males brood eggs from December to March before giving live birth.