Leiopotherapon plumbeus

Leiopotherapon plumbeus
	Leiopotherapon plumbeus being sold in a Philippine market.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Perciformes
Family:	Terapontidae
Genus:	Leiopotherapon
Species:	L. plumbeus
Binomial name
	Leiopotherapon plumbeus; (Kner, 1864)
Synonyms
	Datnia plumbea Kner, 1864

Leiopotherapon plumbeus, known commonly as the silver perch,[1] is a species of fish in the family Terapontidae, the grunters. It is endemic to the Philippines, where it is called ayungin and bugaong, bigaong, and bagaong.[1]

Description

This species reaches 16 centimeters in maximum length.[2]

Behavior

The species exhibits paternal care, as the male guards and tends the eggs.[2]

Uses

The fish is caught and consumed locally as food. It is considered to be one of the most delicious of the native freshwater fish in the Philippines. The supply has run thin due to overharvesting, and it is now rare in markets, making it quite expensive.[3]

The fish is also used to feed ducks.[3]

Conservation

Populations have declined due to overfishing.[3] In 1991 it was the most abundant fish in Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines; by 2002 it was the third most abundant. Sedimentation and pollution contribute to the population drop in the lake.[4]

The fish is being reared in captive breeding projects, in which it grows well on a diet of prawn food and tubifex worms.[3] It is dosed with hormones to induce spawning.[5]

Gallery

Ayungin found in Lake Buhi, Camarines Sur.
This species, known locally as 'ayungin', is a common food fish in the country.

gollark: Also, I can randomly be extremely productive on entirely worthless projects nobody ever needs.

gollark: Me too, except possibly more than three hours.

gollark: Preemptive multithreading, while technically possible in certain environments, is not presently being worked on.

gollark: This would also not happen in potatOS, since it uses cooperative multithreading.

gollark: Just as planned.

References

Froese, R. and D. Pauly, Eds. Common names of Leiopotherapon plumbeus. FishBase. 2013.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly, Eds. Leiopotherapon plumbeus. FishBase. 2013.
'Ayungin' (Leiopotherapon plumbeus) target of conservation attempt by researchers. innovations-report.com April 29, 2009.
Santos, B. S. et al. (2010). Geometric morphometric analysis and gill raker count variation of populations of the endemic Philippine silver perch, Leiopotherapon plumbeus (Perciformes: Terapontidae). The Philippine Agricultural Scientist 93(4)
Agron, E. B. BAR highlights promising UPLB technology to save endangered fish species. Archived 2013-07-01 at Archive.today BAR Chronicle 10(8). August, 2009. Bureau of Agricultural Research.