Heraldia nocturna Paxton, 1975
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The upside-down pipefish (Heraldia nocturna) is a species of pipefish endemic to the coasts of southern Australia, from New South Wales to Geographe Bay in Western Australia, where it is found in rocky reefs at depths of from 2 to 15 metres (6.6 to 49.2 ft). It grows to a length of 9.2 centimetres (3.6 in) SL. This species is the only known member of its genus. Like other pipefish it is ovoviviparous but it may breed seasonally, as gravid males have been collected between September and November.
Wikipedia contributors, Heraldia nocturna; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:47:21.736899+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Heraldia nocturna Paxton, 1975
- Name authority
- Paxton, 1975
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Syngnathiformes
- Family
- Syngnathidae
- Genus
- Heraldia
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderSyngnathiformes
- familySyngnathidae Bonaparte, 1831
- subfamilyNerophinae Kaup, 1853
- genusHeraldia Paxton, 1975
- speciesHeraldia nocturna Paxton, 1975
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Paxton, J. R. (1975). Heraldia nocturna, a new genus and species of pipefish (family Syngnathidae) from eastern Australia, with comments on Maroubra perserrata Whitley. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences (Series 4), 40 (15): 439–447. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3KXN7. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.