# Squaretail mullet

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Species of fish

Squaretail mullet Conservation status Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[1] Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Order: Mugiliformes Family: Mugilidae Genus: Ellochelon Whitley, 1930 Species: E. vaigiensis Binomial name Ellochelon vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) Synonyms[2] Mugil vaigiensis Quoy & Gaimard, 1825 Chelon vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) Liza vaigiensis (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) Mugil macrolepidotus Rüppell, 1830 Mugil melanochir Valenciennes, 1836 Mugil rossii Bleeker, 1854 Mugil tegobuan Montrouzier, 1857 Mugil occidentalis Castelnau, 1873 Mugil ventricosus Castelnau, 1875 Mugil delicatus Jouan, 1878

The **squaretail mullet** (***Ellochelon vaigiensis***), also known as the **diamondscale mullet**, is a species of [grey mullet](/source/Mullet_(fish)) from the [family](/source/Family_(taxonomy)) [Mugilidae](/source/Mugilidae). It is an Indo-Pacific species and is the only species in the [monospecific](/source/Monotypy) [genus](/source/Genus) *Ellochelon*.[2]

## Description

The squaretail mullet is olive-brown on its back with silvery flanks and a white or yellowish belly. It has six longitudinal stripes along its sides which are formed by darker longitudinal markings on the scales which also have darkened edges creating a slight chequered appearance on the flanks. The iris has yellow patches. The fins have dark margins which contrasts with their mainly yellowish cast but the [caudal fin](/source/Caudal_fin) is obviously yellow and in smaller specimens the [pectoral fin](/source/Pectoral_fin) is totally black but the lower part becomes yellowish in older fish.[2]

## Distribution

The squaretail mullet occurs from the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea) and the coast of East Africa, as far south as Mozambique, eastwards through the [Indo-pacific](/source/Indo-pacific) to [New Caledonia](/source/New_Caledonia) and the [Great Barrier Reef](/source/Great_Barrier_Reef) and north to southern Japan.[1][3]

## Habitat and biology

The squaretail mullet can be found in lagoons, estuaries, sheltered sandy shorelines and coastal creeks and can enter freshwater, having been found up to 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) up rivers, although they normally do not move further inland than the influence of the tides. They can form large aggregations among mangroves and the juveniles are frequently recorded in rice paddies and mangroves.[2] They feed on [phytoplankton](/source/Phytoplankton), [algae](/source/Algae) and [detritus](/source/Detritus). Spawning is at sea,[4] and the eggs are pelagic and do not adhere to objects.[2]

## Human utilisation

The smaller fish are caught for use as bait fish.[2] It is also locally used as a food fish being marketed fresh; its roe is also sold and eaten. It is fished for using [beach seines](/source/Beach_seine), [gillnets](/source/Gillnet), [cast nets](/source/Cast_net) and stake nets.[1]

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-IUCN_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-IUCN_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-IUCN_1-2) Freyhof, J. & Sparks, J.S. (2017). ["*Ellochelon vaigiensis*"](https://doi.org/10.2305%2FIUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T197054A96231220.en). *[The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species](/source/The_IUCN_Red_List_of_Threatened_Species)*. **2017**: e.T197054A96231220. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T197054A96231220.en](https://doi.org/10.2305%2FIUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T197054A96231220.en).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-FishBase_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-FishBase_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-FishBase_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-FishBase_2-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-FishBase_2-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-FishBase_2-5) [Froese, Rainer](/source/Rainer_Froese); [Pauly, Daniel](/source/Daniel_Pauly) (eds.). ["*Ellochelon vaigiensis jine*"](https://www.fishbase.org/summary/SpeciesSummary.php?genusname=Ellochelon&speciesname=vaigiensis+jine). *[FishBase](/source/FishBase)*.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Jennings, G. H. (1997). [*The Sea and Freshwater Fishes of Australia & New Guinea*](https://books.google.com/books?id=yDXjH6kJ0CkC&dq=Squaretail+mullet&pg=PA107-IA2). Calypso Publications. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-906301-62-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-906301-62-3).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-FoA_4-0)** Dianne J. Bray. ["*Liza vaigiensis*"](http://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/4420). *Fishes of Australia*. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 30 Oct 2018.

## External links

- Photos of [Squaretail mullet](https://sealifecollection.org/taxon/218878) in the Sealife Collection

Taxon identifiers Ellochelon vaigiensis Wikidata: Q28746239 BOLD: 89283 CoL: 39BX8 FishBase: 5656 GBIF: 2400831 iNaturalist: 445910 IRMNG: 10734266 IUCN: 197054 NCBI: 1111475 Observation.org: 791412 OBIS: 218878 Open Tree of Life: 117915 TaiCOL: t0028842 WoRMS: 218878 Mugil vaigiensis Wikidata: Q28746241 CoL: 44J9N GBIF: 2400834 IRMNG: 10738431 ITIS: 170368 WoRMS: 303961

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Squaretail mullet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squaretail_mullet) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squaretail_mullet?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.