Family Molidae - Molas or Ocean Sunfishes
  Order
:
  Class
:
Actinopterygii
No. in FishBase
:
Genera : 3 | Species : 4 Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes
  Environment
:
Fresh : No | Brackish : No | Marine : Yes
  Division
:
Marine
  Aquarium
:
none
  First Fossil Record
:
upper   Tertiary     Miocene
Ref..   Berg, L.S. 1958
  Remark
:
Distribution: worldwide in tropical to temperate seas. Mouth tiny; teeth united and beaklike (Ref. 50659). Jaws with 2 fused teeth. Each side of head with 2 tiny nostrils. Dorsal and anal fins lacking spines, but provides the power for locomotion. Caudal peduncle absent. Caudal fin, when present, a pseudocaudal fin being formed by posteriorly migrated dorsal and anal fin rays. No lateral line. No swim bladder. Vertebrae 16-18 (Ref. 245). Pelvic fins absent. Skin leathery and thick. Gill openings small, in front of pectoral fins. Gray above, silvery gray-brown on sides, paler or dusky below. Two species grow to about 3 m in length, largest to 1,500 kg. Fecundity can register an estimated 300,000,000 eggs in Mola mola. Young are spiny and differ markedly from adults. Slow-swimming, epipelagic plankton feeders; some prey on jellyfishes but also feed on algae, crustaceans and fishes (Ref. 50659).
  Etymology
:
Latin, mola = millstone, by the shape of this fish ( Ref. 45335).
  Reproductive guild
:
nonguarders
  Typical activity level
:
  Main Ref
:
  Coordinator
:
  Deep Fin Classification
:
Osteichthyes | Actinopterygii | Actinopteri | Neopterygii | Teleostei | Osteoglossocephalai | Clupeocephala | Euteleosteomorpha | Neoteleostei | Eurypterygia | Ctenosquamata | Acanthomorphata | Euacanthomorphacea | Percomorphaceae | Percomorpharia | Tetraodontiformes | Moloidei | Molidae

Show species images | Show valid names | Nominal species list | Identification keys | CAS specimen photos | References

 
Ref.
[ e.g. 9948]
Glossary
[ e.g. cephalopods]


Species/Synonymy list for the family Molidae as currently in FishBase

Important recommendation:

The list below must not be used as an authority reference synonymy list like those found in scientific published revisions, which must be the source to be used and cited eventually when they exist.

Rather, it reflects the current content of FishBase, and the progress with respect to synchronization with the Catalog of Fishes. However, we think it can be useful for users to assess the quality of information in FishBase, to start new work on the family, or to cross-check with other lists.

But we appreciate to be cited in publications when this list has been of any working value. In particular, for published scientific, we suggest then to cite it in the Material and Method section as a useful tool to conduct the research, but again, not as a taxonomic or nomenclatural authority reference.

Unless it is explicitly precised, the list is not complete, please search all original names published for the family in the Catalog of Fishes (genera, species), including those with uncertain or unknown status, that are not included in FishBase when they are not attached to a valid species.

This list uses some data from Catalog of Fishes (not shown but used to sort names).

In the column CofF, the digit indicates the status of synchronization with CofF: 0: Not checked; 1: Same status;   2: Different status;   3: Other combination;   4: Synonym in CofF;   5: Species/Subspecies issue;   6: Synonym of another species in CofF;   7: Not in CofF;   8: Should not be in CofF. The CofF version currently used is the one published on 23-07-2014 (Ref. 97102).

The list ordered as follows:

Please send comments and corrections if you detect errors or missing names.

Show all | Show only accepted name | Show only accepted and original names
Scientifc name Status Senior/Junior synonym Combination CofF
Mola mola (Linnaeus, 1758)
acceptedseniornew
Tetraodon mola Linnaeus, 1758
synonymseniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus mola (Linnaeus, 1758)
synonymseniornew
Mola aculeata Koelreuter, 1766
synonymjuniororiginal2
Diodon mola Pallas, 1770
synonymjuniororiginal2
Diodon nummularis Walbaum, 1792
synonymjuniororiginal2
Mola rotunda Cuvier, 1797
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus hispidus Bloch & Schneider, 1801
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus fasciatus Bloch & Schneider, 1801
synonymjuniororiginal2
Cephalus brevis Shaw, 1804
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Diplanchias nasus Rafinesque, 1810
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragus luna Rafinesque, 1810
synonymjuniororiginal2
Mola aspera Nardo, 1827
synonymjuniororiginal2
Mola hispida Nardo, 1827
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Diodon carinatus Mitchill, 1828
synonymjuniororiginal2
Pedalion gigas Guilding, 1838
synonymjuniororiginal2
Ozodura orsini Ranzani, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
Tympanomium planci Ranzani, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
Trematopsis willugbei Ranzani, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus retzii Ranzani, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus ghini Ranzani, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus redi Ranzani, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Molacanthus pallasii Swainson, 1839
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
! Orthagoriscus analis Ayres, 1859
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal
Aledon storeri Castelnau, 1861
synonymjuniororiginal2
Aledon capensis Castelnau, 1861
synonymjuniororiginal2
Mola ramsayi (Giglioli, 1883)
acceptedseniornew
Orthragoriscus ramsayi Giglioli, 1883
synonymseniororiginal2
! Orthagoriscus eurypterus Philippi, 1892
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal
Ranzania laevis (Pennant, 1776)
acceptedseniornew
Ostracion laevis Pennant, 1776
synonymseniororiginal2
Tetrodon truncatus Retzius, 1785
synonymseniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus truncatus (Retzius, 1785)
synonymjuniornew
Ranzania truncata (Retzius, 1785)
synonymjuniornew
Tetraodon truncatus Retzius, 1785
synonymjuniororiginal
Diodon dimidiatus Walbaum, 1792
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragoriscus oblongus Bloch & Schneider, 1801
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Cephalus varius Shaw, 1804
synonymjuniororiginal2
Orthragus oblongus Rafinesque, 1810
synonymjuniororiginal2
Mola planci Nardo, 1827
synonymjuniororiginal2
Cephalus elongatus Risso, 1827
synonymjuniororiginal2
Cephalus cocherani Traill, 1832
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Ranzania typus Nardo, 1840
synonymjuniororiginal2
Ostracion boops Richardson, 1845
synonymjuniororiginal2
synonymjuniororiginal2
Ranzania makua Jenkins, 1895
synonymjuniororiginal2
Masturus lanceolatus (Liénard, 1840)
acceptedseniornew
synonymseniororiginal2
Masturus lanceolata (Liénard, 1840)
synonymseniornew
Mola lanceolata (Liénard, 1840)
synonymseniornew
Mola lanceolatus (Liénard, 1840)
synonymseniornew
synonymjuniororiginal2
Masturus oxyuropterus (Bleeker, 1873)
synonymjuniornew
Pseudomola lassarati Cadenat, 1959
synonymjuniororiginal2
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