{{Short description|Species of fish}} {{Speciesbox | image = Siganus magnificus 1.jpg | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name = iucn>{{cite iucn | author = Allen, G.R. | year = 2010 | title = ''Siganus magnificus'' |errata=2017 | article-number = e.T154703A115224979 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T154703A4610996.en | access-date = 29 August 2021}}</ref> | taxon = Siganus magnificus | authority = (Burgess, 1977) | synonyms = * ''Lo magnificus'' <small>Burgess, 1977</small> | synonyms_ref = <ref name = Fishbase>{{FishBase|Siganus|magnificus|month=June|year=2021}}</ref> }}
The '''magnificent rabbitfish''' ('''''Siganus magnificus'''''), also known as the '''magnificent foxface''' or the '''Andaman foxface''', is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a rabbitfish belonging to the family Siganidae. It is from the eastern Indian Ocean. It occasionally makes its way into the aquarium trade. It grows to a length of {{cvt|24|cm}}.
==Taxonomy== The magnificent foxface was first formally described in 1977 as ''Lo magnificus'' by the American ichthyologist Warren E. Burgess with the type locality given as Phuket in the Andaman Sea off Thailand.<ref name = CofF>{{Cof genus | genus = Siganus | access-date = 29 August 2021}}</ref> Burgess placed it in the genus ''Lo'' alongside the other "foxfaced rabbitfishes" but this genus is now subsumed within the genus ''Siganus,'' although some workers still treat it as a subgenus.<ref name = Fatherree>{{cite web | author = Jmaes W. Fatherree | title = Aquarium Fish: Fishes of the Genus Siganus: The Rabbitfishes | year = 2013 | access-date = 29 August 2021 | publisher = reefs.com | url = https://reefs.com/magazine/aquarium-fish-fishes-of-the-genus-siganus-the-rabbitfishes/}}</ref> S. magnificus has an allopatric range to the closely related foxface rabbitfish (''S. vulpinus''), which has a wide Western Pacific distribution.<ref name = iucn/> The specific name ''magnificus'' means "splendid", a reference to the beautiful coloration of this fish.<ref name = ETYFish>{{cite web | url = https://etyfish.org/acanthuriformes2/| title = Order Acanthuriformes (part 2): Families Ephippidae, Leiognathidae, Scatophagidae, Antigoniidae, Siganidae, Caproidae, Luvaridae, Zanclidae and Acanthuridae | work = The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database | editor1= Christopher Scharpf | editor2 = Kenneth J. Lazara | name-list-style = amp |date = 12 January 2021 | access-date = 29 August 2021 | publisher = Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara}}</ref>
== Description == left|thumb|''S. magnificus'' The magnificent rabbitfish has an oval compressed body with a relatively elongated snout.<ref name = monaco>{{cite web | url = https://www.monaconatureencyclopedia.com/siganus-magnificus-2/?lang=en | title = ''Siganus magnificus'' | author = Giuseppe Mazza | date = 8 July 2015 | translator = Mario Beltramini | access-date = 29 August 2021 | publisher = Monaco Nature Encyclopaedia}}</ref> There are 13 spines and 10 soft rays in its long dorsal fin, while the anal fin has 7 spines and 9 soft rays.<ref name = Fishbase/> It has a slightly forked caudal fin.<ref name = monaco/> This species attains a maximum total length of {{cvt|24|cm}},<ref name = Fishbase/> but it is rarely longer than {{cvt|20|cm}}.<ref name = monaco/> The background color of the body is white, broken by a large black saddle-like blotch with fine spots on its margins. There is also a black facial stripe. The pectoral, anal and caudal fins have bright yellow margins, while the soft-rayed part of the dorsal fin has a pale red margin.<ref name="Adams">{{cite web|last=Adams|first=Jake|date=1 November 2016|title=Siganus magnificus: Now THIS is how a magnificent foxface should look|url=https://reefbuilders.com/2016/11/01/siganus-magnificus-now-this-is-how-a-magnificent-foxface-should-look/|access-date=29 August 2021|website=Reef Builders|language=en}}</ref>
== Distribution and habitat == thumb|Showing dorsal fin spines The magnificent rabbitfish is endemic to the Andaman Sea.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lemer|first1=Sarah|last2=Aurelle|first2=Didier|last3=Vigliola|first3=Laurent|last4=Durand|first4=Jean-Dominique|last5=Borsa|first5=Philippe|title=Cytochrome b barcoding, molecular systematics and geographic differentiation in rabbitfishes (Siganidae)|journal=Comptes Rendus Biologies|volume=330|issue=1|pages=86–94|doi=10.1016/j.crvi.2006.09.002|pmid=17241952|issn=1631-0691|year=2007|url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00553678/file/Lemer_et_al_manuscrit_pour_HAL_CRBiol_2007.pdf}}</ref> It has been recorded with certainty from the Mergui Archipelago in Myanmar, and the Surin and Similan Islands in Thailand, it may also occur around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the west but it has not been searched for there. Reports of this species from Java and Sumatra require confirmation.<ref name = iucn/> It is found at depths between {{cvt|2|and|30|m}}<ref name = Fishbase/> on coral reefs, most commonly on sheltered reefs among branching corals.<ref name = iucn/>
== Biology == ''Signus magnificus'' has a diet of algae and small invertebrates. The adults are frequently encountered in pairs, while the secretive juveniles tend to occur solitarily and use the coral to provide shelter. Magnificent rabbitfishes are thought to have a lifespan of about 10–12 years, becoming sexually mature at 2 years old. The pelagic larval stage of this species means that there is likely only to be a single population.<ref name = iucn/>
== Conservation and utilization == The magnificent rabbitfish is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN. The reefs it is found on in Thailand are far enough offshore to be relatively safe from development and many are in protected areas.<ref name = iucn/> This species is collected for the aquarium trade.<ref name = Adams/>
==References== {{Commons category|Siganus magnificus}} {{Reflist}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q2496170}}
Category:Fish of Thailand Category:Siganidae Category:Fish described in 1977