Littlehead porgy | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Spariformes |
Family: | Sparidae |
Genus: | Calamus |
Species: | C. proridens |
Binomial name | |
Calamus proridens D. S. Jordan & Gilbert, 1884 | |
The littlehead porgy (Calamus proridens) is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. It is only found in the western portion of the tropical Atlantic Ocean, where they are often caught and used as food. [2] [3]
The Littlehead porgy was first formally described in 1884 by the Ichthyologists David Starr Jordan and Charles Henry Gilbert with its type locality given as Key West in Florida. [4] The genus Calamus is placed in the family Sparidae within the order Spariformes by the 5th edition of Fishes of the World . [5] Some authorities classify this genus in the subfamily Sparinae, [6] but the 5th edition of Fishes of the World does not recognise subfamilies within the Sparidae. [5]
The littlehead porgy has the specific name proridens which is combination of prora, meaning prow" and dens, which means "teeth". This is an allusion to the large canine-like teeth on either side of the upper jaw in adults, these are diagonally pointing downwards and outwards. [7]
While maturing, Littlehead porgies usually reach between 17 and 22 cm in length. Fully grown adults are commonly 37 cm, [3] although they have been recorded to grow up to 46 cm. [8] When compared to other members of their genus, they can be distinguished by having small scales, and relatively deep bodies with steep profiles. [9] The molar-like teeth, that all porgies have, are more similar to canines in this species. [9] Littlehead porgies are generally silver in color, with violet spots on their scales that form stripes on their upper bodies. [9] These stripes are then crossed by darker bars of color. [9] The Littlehead porgy has been described as one of the most brightly colored members of the porgy family, which contains well over 100 species in 37 genera. [10]
Known only from the western Atlantic ocean, Littlehead porgies are found off the northeast coast of Florida and in the northern Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, [11] south to the Bay of Campeche, which lies to the west of the Yucatan peninsula, [12] and northern South America. [13] They are normally associated with reefs, and can be found on hard spongey or coral bottoms where they feed primarily on invertebrates, such as crustaceans, [9] [14] and often migrate cyclically between feeding and spawning grounds. [15] The Littlehead porgy can be preyed upon by seabirds such as the Sooty tern. [12]
Archosargus probatocephalus, the sheepshead, sheepshead seabream or convict fish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This species is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean. The sheepshead is an important species to recreational and commercial fisheries.
Sparidae is a family of ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Spariformes, the sea breams and porgies, although they were traditionally classified in the order Perciformes. They are found in shallow temperate and tropical waters around the world and are demersal carnivores.
Calamus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. Most of the species in this genus are found in the Western Atlantic Ocean, with 2 species occurring in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
Lethrinidae are a family of ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Spariformes commonly known as emperors, emperor breams, and pigface breams.
The sheepshead porgy, also known as the littlemouth porgy or speckled porgy, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This species is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean.
Acanthopagrus latus, the yellowfin seabream, grey bream, Houttuyn's yellowfin seabream, Japanese bream or yellow-finned black porgy, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This fish is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.
The saucereye porgy is an ocean-going species of fish in the family Sparidae. In Bermuda, they are also known as the goat's head porgy. In Jamaica, they are known as the Porgi grunt and the sugareye porgy. They may also be known simply by the name Porgy in several other Caribbean islands. Saucereye porgies are considered to be minor gamefishes and when caught are marketed both fresh and frozen.
The jolthead porgy is an ocean-going species of fish in the family Sparidae. In Bermuda, it is known as the blue bone porgy, in the United States, it is also known by the Spanish name bojanado, in Jamaica, it is one of the species known by the name, porgi grunt.
The pluma porgy, also known as the West Indian porgy, pluma or pimento grunt, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. This species is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean.
The knobbed porgy is an ocean-going species of gamefish of the bream/porgy family, Sparidae. They are only found in the western portion of the tropical Atlantic Ocean, where they are often caught with trawling nets or by angling, and used as food. The knobbed porgy was named by John Randall and David K. Caldwell as part of a 1966 review of the genus Calamus, which was published in the academic journal Science. Randall and Caldwell also described three other species of Calamus in the paper.
Boops is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. There are two species in this genus, one in the Western Atlantic and Mediterranean, and the other in the Western Indian Ocean.
Archosargus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. These fishes occur in the Western Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Oceans.
Gnathodentex is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors or emperor breams. It is a monotypic genus, containing a single species, the goldspot seabream, also known as the striped large-eye bream. This taxon has a wide distribution in Indo-West Pacific region.
Wattsia is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the familyLethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. The only species in the genus is Wattsa mossambica, the Mozambique large-eye bream or Mozambique sea bream of the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans.
Pentapodus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Nemipteridae, the threadfin breams. These fishes are found in the Indo-Pacific region.
Gymnocranius euanus, the Japanese large-eye bream, Japanese sea bream, paddletail bream, speckled emperor or iodine bream, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lethrinidae, the emperors and emperor breams. This fish is found in the Western Pacific Ocean.
Acanthopagrus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. The fish in this genus are found in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans.
Cheimerius is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Sparidae, the seabreams and porgies. The only species in the genus is Cheimerius nufar, the santer seabream, santer or soldier, of the Indian Ocean.
Chrysoblephus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Sparidae, the sea breams and porgies. The fish in this genus are found in the western Indian Ocean and southeastern Atlantic Ocean.
The doublewhip threadfin bream is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Nemipteridae, the threadfin breams. This species is found in the Indo-West Pacific region.