Opistognathus robinsi
Spotfin Jawfish
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Opistognathidae (Jawfishes)
Opistognathus
Opistognathus robinsi (Spotfin Jawfish)
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
Maxilla extended as a thin lamina; anterior naris at end of short tube with a simple cirrus on posterior rim; outer jaw teeth moderately large, conical, and recurved; inner jaw teeth strongly recurved and arranged in two or three irregular rows; vomer with one to five large, blunt teeth; gill rakers on first arch number 28 to 35; measurements (% SL): head length 29%–39%, postorbital head length 16%–22%, orbit diameter 9%–15%, upper jaw length 19%–25% in females and 21%–32% in males, pelvic fin length 17%–25%, caudal fin length 18%–24%, body depth 18%–24%; pectoral fin with 18 to 21 rays; dorsal fin with 10 or 11 spines and 15 to 18 rays; anal fin with 2 or 3 spines and 16 to 18 rays; caudal fin rounded; body covered with cycloid scales; scales in horizontal series number about 73 to 88; lateral line very near dorsal fin base; vertebrae number 29 to 31: 10 precaudal and 19 to 21 caudal
Brownish with dark reticulations and speckles on head and nape, pale spots and blotches on body, and prominent ocellus between third and seventh dorsal spines
Distribution
Western Atlantic from South Carolina and the Bahamas to the northern Gulf of Mexico
Northern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Near shore to 46 m
Biology
131 mm SL
Continental species (Ref. 26893).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-08-23.
References
Robins and Ray 1986 (as Opistognathus sp.)
Smith-Vaniz 1997
Smith-Vaniz 2002a
Smith-Vaniz, W.F. (1997) Five new species of jawfishes (Opistognathus: Opistognathidae) from the western Atlantic ocean. Bull. Mar. Sci. 60(3):1074-1128.
Comments On Opistognathus robinsi