Dormitator maculatus
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Eleotridae (Sleepers)
Dormitator
Dormitator maculatus (Fat Sleeper)
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
Smooth preopercular margin; fully scaled head; broad and flat head dorsally; thin lips; upper lip continuous across symphysis; moderately protrusible upper jaw; oblique mouth; upper jaw not reaching anterior margin of eye; jaw teeth in several rows, outer row slightly movable and slender; teeth present on vomer, absent on palatine; tongue with rounded margin; fleshy preopercular margin; gill opening slightly restricted dorsally, extending ventrally to below posterior margin of orbit; head length 29%–33% SL, snout length 8%–9% SL, eye diameter 5%–8% SL, interorbital width 11%–14% SL, upper jaw length 8%–10% SL, pectoral fin length 24%–30% SL, body depth 27%–32% SL; pectoral fin broad and fanlike with 14 rays; first dorsal fin with 7 spines, second dorsal fin with 1 spine and 8 rays; pelvic fins close-set with 1 spine and 5 rays each; anal fin with 1 spine and 9 rays; caudal fin rounded; body and most of head, including entire cheek, covered with scales; cycloid scales on head, nape, chest, and abdomen; ctenoid scales elsewhere; head scales in regular mosaic pattern; 25-35 scales in horizontal series; 27 vertebrae (12 precaudal, 15 caudal)
Dark brown to blackish with large bluish-black blotch above pectoral fin base; outer margin of dorsal and anal fins dull red; occasionally with several series of horizontally arranged spots on body
Distribution
Western Atlantic from Chesapeake Bay and the Bahamas to southeastern Brazil, including the northern and southern Gulf of Mexico and the Antilles
Habitat Associations
Fresh and brackish waters on soft substrates
Soft substrates
Biology
Maximum known size is 380 mm TL
Adults inhabit marshes, muddy ponds and channels with a salinity range of 0 to 21 ppt (Ref. 7251), up to 38.4 ppt in some cases (Ref. 97140). Mostly found in fresh water but also in brackish mangrove areas. They ascend upstream but remain in the lower reaches. Sexually mature after one year. Gonads develop during the dry season. Average size at maturity is 5.1 cm for males, 4.5 cm for females. Omnivorous, adults feed mainly on plants, sediments and invertebrates. They undergo coloration change during reproduction, carrying out a complex nuptial parade. Adults guard the nest. Egg is 0.3 mm, incubation time is 11 to 16 hours at 27°C (Ref. 35237).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; guarders (nesters).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2019-02-11. Resilience: Very low (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial.
References
Springer and Woodburn 1960
Böhlke and Chaplin 1968
Dawson 1969b
Hoese and Moore 1977, 1998
Robins and Ray 1986
Smith 1997
Castro-Aguirre et al. 1999
Murdy and Hoese 2002a
Riehl, R. and H.A. Baensch (1991) Aquarien Atlas. Band. 1. Melle: Mergus, Verlag für Natur-und Heimtierkunde, Germany. 992 p.
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.
Cervigón, F. (1994) Los peces marinos de Venezuela. Volume 3. Fundación Científica Los Roques, Caracas,Venezuela. 295 p.
Claro, R. (1994) Características generales de la ictiofauna. p. 55-70. In R. Claro (ed.) Ecología de los peces marinos de Cuba. Instituto de Oceanología Academia de Ciencias de Cuba and Centro de Investigaciones de Quintana Roo.
Smith, C.L. (1997) National Audubon Society field guide to tropical marine fishes of the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York. 720 p.
Teixeira, R.L. (1994) Abundance, reproductive period, and feeding habits of eleotrid fishes in estuarine habitats of north-east Brazil. J. Fish Biol. 45(5):749-761.
Lim, P., F.J. Meunier, P. Keith and P.Y. Noël (2002) Atlas des poissons et des crustacés d'eau douce de la Martinique. Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris. Patrimoines Naturels, 51:120p.
Kullander, S.O. (2003) Gobiidae (Gobies). p. 657-665. In R.E. Reis, S.O. Kullander and C.J. Ferraris, Jr. (eds.) Checklist of the freshwater fishes of South and Central America. Porto Alegre: EDIPUCRS, Brasil.
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