Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Cairns rainbowfish (Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides), recorded as Endangered
Cairns rainbowfish (Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Endangered

Cairns rainbowfish

Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides

The Cairns rainbowfish is a rainbowfish endemic to Australia.

Status
Endangered
Scientific name
Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides
Recorded from
Australia
Taxonomy
Atheriniformes · Melanotaeniidae · Cairnsichthys

The rainbowfish

Cairns rainbowfish is a rainbowfish in the family Melanotaeniidae (order Atheriniformes) — Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides.

Range and habitat

The Cairns rainbowfish is a rainbowfish endemic to Australia. This species is endemic to the wet tropics of north eastern Queensland from the Daintree River and Cape Tribulation in the north south to Innisfail where its occurs in shallow, fast flowing, shady streams over sandy substrates where the roots of trees, woody debris, leaf litter, undercut banks and hydrophytes provide cover.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Habits

Silversides and rainbowfishes need clear water and a place to school. A lake form does not commute to the next basin.

In crisis

Cairns rainbowfish is Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Cairns rainbowfish, Wikidata item Q1244375. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Also in this catalog

Photograph of Vaquita (Phocoena sinus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Vaquita

Phocoena sinus
Photograph of Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Javan rhinoceros

Rhinoceros sondaicus
Photograph of Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Sumatran orangutan

Pongo abelii
Photograph of Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Axolotl

Ambystoma mexicanum

Quick answers

What is Cairns rainbowfish?
Cairns rainbowfish is a rainbowfish in the family Melanotaeniidae (order Atheriniformes) — Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides.
What is the conservation status of Cairns rainbowfish?
Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Cairns rainbowfish live?
This species is endemic to the wet tropics of north eastern Queensland from the Daintree River and Cape Tribulation in the north south to Innisfail where its occurs in shallow, fast flowing, shady streams over sandy substrates where the roots of trees, woody debris, leaf litter, undercut banks and hydrophytes provide cover.
Why is Cairns rainbowfish in crisis?
It is Endangered on Wikidata. Read the official Red List assessment for the criteria.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Cairns rainbowfish a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.