Jordan's damsel
Teixeirichthys jordani (Rutter, 1897)
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
Jordan's damsel (Teixeirichthys jordani) is a species of ray-finned fish from the family Pomacentridae, the damselfishes and clownfishes, it is the only species in the monotypic genus Teixeirichthys. It has a disjunct distribution in the Indian and western pacific Oceans having been recorded from the Red Sea, Mozambique Channel, Seychelles, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China and Japan. It is found in beds of sea grass and over sandy substrates. Jordan's damsel is frequently observed to form mid-water aggregations of as many as several hundreds of individuals. It occurs at depths of 10–20 metres (33–66 ft). It has been recorded using small rocky outcrops and areas of debris to nest in in the Gulf of Aqaba. The generic name honours Gabriel M. Teixeira (1897-1973), who was the Governor-General of Mozambique and who assisted J. L. B. Smith's studies of the fish fauna of that territory. The specific name and common name both honour the American ichthyologist David Starr Jordan (1851-1931) who gave a collection of specimens from Swatow to Rutter, among which was the type of this species.
Wikipedia contributors, Jordan's damsel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T05:02:29.386796+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Teixeirichthys jordani (Rutter, 1897)
- Name authority
- (Rutter, 1897)
- Common name
- Jordan's damsel
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Family
- Pomacentridae
- Genus
- Teixeirichthys
- 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
- familyPomacentridae Bonaparte, 1831
- genusTeixeirichthys Smith, 1953
- speciesTeixeirichthys jordani (Rutter, 1897)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Teixeirichthys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Teixeirichthys obtusirostris (Gunther, 1862) | PomacentridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Pomacentrus polylepis Regan, 1908 Regan, 1908 | synonym |
| Teixeirichthys mossambicus Smith, 1953 Smith, 1953 | synonym |
| Pomacentrus jordani Rutter, 1897 Rutter, 1897 | synonym |
| Pomacentrus formosanus Fowler & Bean, 1922 Fowler & Bean, 1922 | synonym |
| Pristotis jordani (Rutter, 1897) (Rutter, 1897) | synonym |
| Teixeirichthys formosanus (Fowler & Bean, 1922) (Fowler & Bean, 1922) | synonym |
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.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=212792 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:55554. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.