Gramma melacara
Blackcap Basslet
Collection Details
Specimens
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Grammatidae (Basslets)
Gramma
Gramma melacara (Blackcap Basslet)
Description
This species account was compiled from
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Characters
Body shape: elongated.
Distribution
Western Central Atlantic: West Indies including the Bahamas and Central America.
Habitat Associations
Marine. reef-associated. depth range 10-180 m. Found in: coral reefs.
Biology
A solitary species (Ref. 26340) found on nearly vertical cliffs and drop-offs beyond outer reefs. Often upside-down. Retreats into recesses when alarmed (Ref. 9710). Has been reared in captivity (Ref. 35420). Most common in water more than 30 m deep. Gradually replaces G. loreto at depths of 15-30 m (Ref. 26938).
Max length: 10.0 cm TL.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2011-03-22.
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial.
References
Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea and W.B. Scott (1991) World fishes important to North Americans. Exclusive of species from the continental waters of the United States and Canada. Am. Fish. Soc. Spec. Publ. (21):243 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.
Randall, J.E. (1996) Caribbean reef fishes. Third Edition - revised and enlarged. T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd., Hong Kong. 3nd ed. 368 p.
Victor, B.C. and J.E. Randall (2010) Gramma dejongi, a new basslet (Perciformes: Grammatidae) from Cuba, a sympatric sibling species of G. loreto. Zoological Studies 49(6):865-871.
Comments On Gramma melacara