| Family: |
Haemulidae (Grunts), subfamily: Haemulinae |
| Max. size: |
40.6 cm TL (male/unsexed); max.weight: 930.0 g |
| Environment: |
reef-associated; marine; depth range 2 - 70 m |
| Distribution: |
Western Atlantic: Bermuda (introduced) and Florida, USA to Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea (Ref. 9626). |
| Diagnosis: |
Dorsal spines (total): 12-12; Dorsal soft rays (total): 16-18; Anal spines: 3-3; Anal soft rays: 9-9. Body striped yellow and silvery blue; fins yellow, 2 black bars: one from nape through eye to mouth, another from origin of dorsal fin to base of pectoral fin. Only grunt fish in the Caribbean with two vertical black bars and yellow stripes. (Ref. 26938). |
| Biology: |
Maximum depth from Ref. 126840. Inhabits reefs and rocky bottoms. Feeds at night on mollusks, echinoderms, annelids, and crustaceans (Ref. 3798). Young pick parasites from the bodies of larger fishes (Ref. 5521). Young are popular aquarium fish (Ref. 7251). Marketed fresh (Ref. 3798). Has been reared in captivity (Ref. 35420). |
| IUCN Red List Status: |
Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 01 March 2011 Ref. (130435)
|
| Threat to humans: |
reports of ciguatera poisoning |
Source and more info: www.fishbase.org. For personal, classroom, and other internal use only. Not for publication.
