This document describes the black spotted croaker, known locally as Kala Poa or Kala Datina. It is a migratory fish found in the Indo-West Pacific that inhabits coastal waters down to 60 meters and estuaries. It grows up to 85 cm in length and feeds mainly on prawns, fish, and crustaceans. The black spotted croaker is commercially important as it contributes over 6.7% of the total marine landings in Bangladesh. It plays an important ecological role by preying on small fish and crustaceans in coastal and estuarine ecosystems.

2.  Content
Local & English name
Classification
Description
Habits & habitats
 Distribution
External feature
Food and feeding habit
Economic importance
Ecological role
Status and conservation
Remarks

3. Local & English name
Local name: Kala Poa ,Kala Datina
English name: Black Spotted Crocar
Classification
Kingdom : Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Sub-phylum: Vertebrate
Superclass : Gnathostoma
Class : Actinopterygii
Order : Perciformes
Family : Sciaenidae
Genus : Protonibea
Species : Protonibea diacanthus

4. Protonibea diacanthus

5. Habit & habitats:
Inhabits coastal waters down to 60m. Ascends
tidal & estuaries.
Feed mainly on prawns & fishes. Juveniles prefer
crustaceans .
Growth to size of 46.6 cm in first year. Fecundity
varies from 5000 to 12250.Attains maturity when
85 cm in length (Bal & Rao, 1984).
Distribution :
Protonibea diacanthus is a migratory species
Found in Indo-West pacific including India ,Sri Lanka,
Myanmar, Bangladesh, Thailand , Indonesia, Japan and
North Australia.

6. External feature :
 Protonibea diacunthus elongated
85 cm in length.
 Head bluntly pointed and glossy with purple.
 Operculum with two weak spines .Upper jaw extending
backward below hind margin of eye.
 Mouth sub-terminal and teeth villiform .
 Scale ctenoid except on the snout and below the eye.
 Lateral line becomes straight above the end of anal.
 Pectorals rounded. Caudal rhomboid .
 Colour; Brownish-grey above ,silvery below . Fins yellowish
with black dots.

7. Food and feeding habit:
 They are carnivorous and active predator .
 Feed mainly on prawns & fishes. Juveniles prefer
crustaceans.
 They are also feed zoobenthos, crustaceans
,echinoderm and annelids.

8. Economic importance:
A commercially important species .
 Protonibea diacanthus along with other sciaenids
contributes over 6.7% of the total marine landing in
Bangladesh .
Usually marketed fresh & also dried . The air bladder is
dried & marketed (Quddus & Shafi,1983) .
Ecological role:
Plays an important role in coastal & estuarine ecosystem by
controlling small fishes & some other crustaceans .

9. Status &Conservation:
 According to IUCN Bangladesh (2000) the status
of the species as not been assessed .
Remarks:
 Protonibea diacanthus is one of the largest of the
jew fishes that occur in the marine waters of
Bangladesh .
[A K Ataur Rahman and M Arifur Rahman]

10. ANY
QUESTION
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