Elops saurus
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Elopiformes (Tarpons and Tenpounders)
Elopidae (Tenpounders)
Elops
Elops saurus (Ladyfish)
Description
Type Locality
No information at this time.
Etymology
No information at this time.
Synonymy
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Characters
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Anal fin soft rays 13-18 (Ross 2001). 21-25 dorsal fin soft rays, SC 103-120 (Hoese and Moore 1977).
Body long, rounded in cross section (Ross 2001).
Terminal (Hubbs et al. 1991) Psuedobranch well developed (Ross 2001).
Distribution
Coastal inhabitant occurring throughout the Gulf of Mexico to Brazil (Hubbs et al 1991)
Inhabits most of the bays and estuaries of the state; specimens also found in the lower reaches of coastal streams (Hubbs et al. 1991)
Abundance/Conservation Status
No information at this time.
Habitat Associations
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Biology
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Phylogeny and Morphologically Similar Fishes
The ladyfish is a member of Elopidae, a primitive family of bony fishes, along with the tarpon. Both of these fish produce elongate, transparent larva called leptacephalus, a larval type that is characteristic of eels, indicating a close relationship between these otherwise dissimilar fishes (Hildebrand 1963).
Host Records
No information at this time.
Commercial or Environmental Importance
No information at this time.
References
Hubbs, C., R. J. Edwards, and G. P. Garrett. 1991. An annotated checklist of the freshwater fishes of Texas, with keys to identification of species. Texas Journal of Science, Supplement 43(4):1-56.
Ross, S. T. 2001. The Inland Fishes of Mississippi. University Press of Mississippi 624 pp.
Hoese, H. D. and R. H. Moore. 1977. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico: Texas, Louisiana, and Adjacent Waters. Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 327 pp.
Hildebrand, S. F. 1963. Families Elopidae and Albulidae. In: Fishes of the western North Atlantic. Sears Fount. Mar. Res. Mem. no. 1, pt. 3, pp. 11-147.
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