Cynoscion arenarius
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Sciaenidae (Drums and Croakers)
Cynoscion
Cynoscion arenarius (Sand Seatrout)
Description
This species account was compiled from
Composite (multiple sources) (McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. University of Texas Press, Austin.)
and processed using AI-assisted text extraction.
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Characters
Elongate body; large, oblique mouth; large canine teeth in tip of upper jaw; dorsal profile of head nearly straight; snout acute; lower jaw slightly projecting; upper jaw extending to posterior margin of eye; posterior naris slitlike and larger than anterior naris; teeth in upper jaw conical and in a narrow band with outer row slightly enlarged; teeth in lower jaw slightly enlarged, in a single row except at tip of jaw, and increasing in size posteriorly; snout with two marginal pores; chin lacking pores and barbels; preopercular margin entire; gill rakers on first arch long and slender, numbering 11 to 15; head length 31%–33% SL; snout length 8%–9% SL; eye diameter 6%–7% SL; interorbital width 6%–7% SL; upper jaw length 14%–15% SL; pectoral fin length 16%–19% SL; body depth 21%–23% SL; pectoral fin with 16 or 17 rays; dorsal fin with 9 or 10 spines in anterior section and 1 spine and 25 to 29 rays in posterior section; anal fin with 2 weak spines and 10 to 12 rays; caudal fin double emarginate; ctenoid scales covering body; cycloid scales covering much of head; anterior portion of rayed section of dorsal fin covered with scales over basal one-third of fin; gas bladder single chambered with a pair of prominent, straight, hornlike diverticula anteriorly
Yellowish brown dorsally and silvery ventrally, with a faint dark area at base of pectoral fin; fins pale yellow
Distribution
Coastal waters in the western Atlantic in the northern and southern Gulf of Mexico and possibly along the east coast of Florida
Habitat Associations
Coastal waters; associated with sandy bottoms, including surf areas; depth range not specified
Estuaries serve as nursery grounds
Biology
Food consists of crustaceans and ray-finned fishes
Maximum known size is 450 mm TL
Maturity is reached between 140 and 180 mm TL at the end of the first year; spawning occurs between March and September, most intensely between March and May and between August and September
Occurs usually over sandy bottoms in shallow coastal waters, being relatively abundant in the surf zone. During summer months the fish move to their nursery and feeding grounds in river estuaries.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2020-02-14. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish.
References
Hoese and Moore 1977
Chao 1978
Shlossman and Chittenden 1981
Robins and Ray 1986
Boschung 1992
Schaldach et al. 1997
Smith 1997
Vega-Cendejas et al. 1997
Castro-Aguirre et al. 1999
Hoese and Moore 1998
Chao 2002
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray (1986) A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p.
Sheridan, P.F. and T.L. Trimm (1983) Summer foods of Texas coastal fishes relative to age and habitat. Fish. Bull. 81(3):643-647.
IGFA (2001) Database of IGFA angling records until 2001. IGFA, Fort Lauderdale, USA.
Chao, N.L. (2003) Scianidae. Croakers. p. 1583-1653. In K.E. Carpenter (ed.) FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Vol. 3: Bony fishes part 2 (Opistognathidae to Molidae), sea turtles and marine mammals.
Patzner, R.A. (2008) Reproductive strategies of fish. pp. 311-350. In Rocha, M.J., A. Arukwe and B.G. Kapoor (eds). Fish reproduction: cytology, biology and ecology. Science Publisher, Inc. Oxford. 631 p.
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