| Inshore Lizardfish | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Aulopiformes |
| Family: | Synodontidae |
| Genus: | Synodus |
| Species: | S. foetens |
| Binomial name | |
| Synodus foetens (Linnaeus, 1766) | |
The inshore lizardfish (Synodus foetens) is a member of the family Synodontidae [1] found in the western Atlantic.
The inshore lizardfish has a maximum length recorded of about 50 cm but generally we see them at about 40 cm long. Their lifespan can be up to nine years. [1] The body of this species is elongated, similar to a cigar. [2] The maximum weight has been seen as 900 g. [1] Females are generally larger than males when mature. [2] The shape of the mouth of this species is large and pointed. The snout is pointed. The top jaw extends beyond the eye. Many slender teeth are present in the roof of the mouth and jaws. The lateral line is considered to be well marked. [3] The lateral line encompasses around 60 scales along the length. [2] The inshore lizardfish has no dorsal spines, 10-13 dorsal soft rays, no anal spines, 11-13 anal soft rays, and 56-62 vertebrae. [3] The color of the dorsal side of the lizardfish ranges from various shades of brown to olive. The belly side ranges from white to yellow. Juveniles have dark spots, these spots are reduced/absent in adults. The sides of the inshore lizardfish have patches that are diamond-shaped. [2] These patches vary in occurrence and intensity, they usually fade with growth and usually occur at the midlateral line on the fish. [3] The dorsal fin is on the center of the back. An adipose fin is present in this species, usually showing a darker spot. [2] The adipose fin is small in size with the base of the fin being no longer than the diameter of the pupil. [3] The anal fin is usually equal in length or longer than the dorsal fin. [3]
The inshore lizardfish is an ambush predator. Its diet consists of various fish and small invertebrates. [1] They include: shrimp, crabs, and cephalopods. [2]
The habitats for these fish include the bottom in shallow inshore marine waters, usually over sand or mud bottoms, including creeks, rivers, among seagrasses, estuaries, bays, and lagoons. [1] Adults have been found to be also in the open sea above continental shelves. [3]
Fertilization has been observed to be external. They spawn all throughout the year. They do not guard their spherical-shaped eggs because the eggs are scattered in the water; they fall into plants and rocks. [2]
The inshore lizardfish is widely distributed. This fish can be found over soft-bottom inshore areas, especially in the northern Gulf of Mexico [1] described as "in the western Atlantic from New Jersey south along the U.S. coast, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and in the Caribbean from Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and St. Martin" (2015).
This species is often captured during shrimp trawls. This occurs in the northern Gulf of Mexico. High mortality occurs from trawl bycatch for this species, but they are usually just discarded after being caught because they have little to no commercial value. [1]
The generic name Synodus is from the Greek syn, meaning grown together, and odus meaning teeth. [3]
The Synodontidae or lizardfishes are benthic (bottom-dwelling) marine and estuarine bony fishes that belong to the aulopiform fish order, a diverse group of marine ray-finned fish consisting of some 15 extant and several prehistoric families. They are found in tropical and subtropical marine waters throughout the world.
The lane snapper, the Mexican snapper, redtail snapper or spot snapper, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is native to the western Atlantic Ocean.
This glossary of ichthyology is a list of definitions of terms and concepts used in ichthyology, the study of fishes.
The thornback ray, or thornback skate, is a species of ray fish in the family Rajidae.
The mutton snapper is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean.
The bigeye snapper, also known as the bigeye seaperch, red sea lined snapper, golden striped snapper, rosy snapper, yellow snapper, or simply snapper, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean. It is the type species of the genus Lutjanus.
The Senegal jack, also known as the African jack, is a species of large marine fish classified in the jack family Carangidae. The species is distributed through the tropical waters of the eastern Atlantic Ocean, ranging along the west African coast from Angola in the south to Mauritania in the north. It can be distinguished from co-occurring relatives by its longer dorsal fin lobe, as well as a host of other anatomical features. The Senegal jack grows to a known maximum length of 1 m. It is a coastal species, known to live semi-pelagically, inhabiting both the sea floor and surface waters to depths of around 200 m. The Senegal jack is a predatory species, taking fish, crabs and shrimps as its main prey items. The species reaches sexual maturity at 21 cm in females and 24 cm in males, with spawning occurring in two periods; February to April and September to November. The species is of minor importance to fisheries, and is not discriminated from other jacks in catch statistics. It is taken by trawls, seines and hook and line, and sold fresh or preserved.
Synodus intermedius, the common sand diver, is a species of fish in the lizardfish family, the Synodontidae, a basal ray-finned fish in the class Actinopterygii. Sand divers inhabit subtropical marine ecosystems, (37-17°N), including sandy- bottom areas on continental shelves, coral reefs, estuaries, bays, and reef structures. They are demersal or benthic fish, which means they live on or close to the sea bed. Distribution ranges from the northern Gulf of Mexico south to the Guianas, and western Atlantic north to North Carolina and Bermuda. They are a common lizardfish in the West Indies. They grow to about 40 cm (16 in) total length, and weigh around 1 kg (2.2 lb).
The California lizardfish is a lizardfish primarily inhabiting the Californian coast. It has a long, brown body, which offers it camouflage in its habitat, the sandy bottom of the ocean. From its hiding spot on the bottom it ambushes small fish and squid. California lizardfish are oviparous and are believed to spawn in the summer months.
The smallscale lizardfish(Saurida caribbaea) is a species of lizardfish that lives mainly in the Western Atlantic.
Clinus brevicristatus, the Cape klipfish, is a species of clinid that occurs in subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean around South Africa where it prefers habitats with plentiful growth of seaweed. This species can reach a maximum length of 12 centimetres (4.7 in) TL.
Terapon theraps, the largescaled terapon, banded grunter, banded trumpeter, flagtail grunter, flagtail trumpeter, large-scaled grunter-perch, Northern grunter and spiky trumpeter, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a grunter from the family Terapontidae. This species has a wide distribution in the Indo-Pacific region.
Lutjanus russellii, Russell's snapper, Moses snapper, fingermark bream, Moses seaperch or Russell's sea-perch, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is native to the western Pacific Ocean.
Lutjanus vitta, the brownstripe red snapper, brownstripe snapper, broadband seaperch, brownstripe seaperch, one-band sea-perch, one-lined snapper or striped seaperch, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is native to the western Pacific and Indian Oceans.
Synodus macrostigmus, commonly known as the largespot lizardfish, is a species of fish in the lizardfish family, Synodontidae, a basal ray-finned fish in the class Actinopterygii. It is native to the warm temperate western Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.
Trachurus delagoa, the African scad, is a species of jack mackerel from the family Carangidae which is found in the south western Indian Ocean.
Lutjanus purpureus, the southern red snapper or Caribbean red snapper, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is native to the western Atlantic Ocean as well the Caribbean Sea.
Scorpaena brasiliensis, the barbfish, goosehead, scorpionfish, orange scorpionfish and red barbfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Scorpaenidae, the scorpionfishes. It is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean. This species has venom on its fin spines.
Lutjanus endecacanthus, the Guinea snapper, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is found on the west coast of Africa in the eastern Atlantic Ocean.
The silk snapper, the West Indian snapper, yellow-eyed snapper or yellow-eyed red snapper, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a snapper belonging to the family Lutjanidae. It is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean.
