Enoplosus armatus (White, 1790)
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
Enoplosus armatus, commonly referred to as the old wife (plural: old wives), is a species of centrarchiform ray-finned fish endemic to the temperate coastal waters of Australia. It is the only genus and species in the family Enoplosidae.
It has a deep and compressed body and concave forehead. These features are characteristic of typical butterflyfishes. However, the old wife is easily distinguished by its silver-and-black, vertical, zebra-striped coloration, and by its two prominent dorsal fins. The second dorsal fin is very long and sickle-shaped. The fish grows up to 50 cm long.
Its dorsal fins have bony, knife-like spines. These have no obvious venom groove nor gland. Nonetheless, the spines are widely considered to inflict a painful venom.
The name "old wife" refers to the sound it makes when caught, caused by it grinding its teeth. Other vernacular names have included "bastard dory", "zebra-fish" (also used for Girella zebra), and "double scalare". It has a similar range and appearance to the Moonlighter (Tilodon sexfasciatus).
Wikipedia contributors, Old wife; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T19:36:16.016456+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Enoplosus armatus (White, 1790)
- Name authority
- (White, 1790)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Centrarchiformes
- Family
- Enoplosidae
- Genus
- Enoplosus
- 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
- orderCentrarchiformes
- familyEnoplosidae Gill, 1893
- genusEnoplosus Lacepède, 1802
- speciesEnoplosus armatus (White, 1790)
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Chaetodon armatus White, 1790 White, 1790 | 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=280685 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:6FBNS. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.