Symphurus billykrietei
Chocolatebanded Tonguefish
NS
G5
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
There are no photos available for this taxon yet.
Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Pleuronectfiormes (Flatfishes)
Cynoglossidae (Tonguefishes)
Symphurus
Symphurus billykrietei (Chocolatebanded Tonguefish)
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.
It may contain errors in spelling, punctuation, or formatting.
When citing, please reference the original source rather than this page.
Learn more about our species accounts.
Characters
12 caudal fin rays, distinct bands on body, no pupillary operculum; anterior naris on ocular side terminates as a long tube reaching anterior margin of lower eye; posterior margin of maxilla extends to anterior margin of lower eye; lower jaw on ocular side lacks fleshy ridge near posterior margin; jaw teeth developed on both sides; head length 18.7%–22.6% SL, head width 20.7%–27% SL, body depth 25.1%–32.8% SL; snout length 15.7%–24% HL, upper jaw length 17.9%–25.3% HL, eye diameter 9.8%–14.3% HL; dorsal fin originates above middle of upper eye with 89-95 rays; pelvic fin moderately long with posteriormost ray connected to body or anal fin; anal fin has 76-84 rays; caudal fin moderately long; body and head covered with large ctenoid scales; scales absent on blind side of dorsal and anal fin rays; 80-100 scales in longitudinal series; small scales on snout and anterior and median surfaces of eyes; dermal papillae well developed on blind side of snout; vertebrae number 50-53
Ocular side light to dark brown with 5-8 irregular bands; dorsal and anal fins lightly pigmented anteriorly, increasing in pigment intensity posteriorly; small dark spot on base of caudal fin; opercular cavity and isthmus unpigmented; blind side uniformly yellowish; peritoneum black
Distribution
Western Atlantic from southern Nova Scotia to Cape Hatteras, and from the Straits of Florida and the southern Gulf of Mexico off the Yucatán Peninsula
Southern Gulf of Mexico
Habitat Associations
Depth range 117-650 m
Biology
Maximum known size 112 mm SL
A deepwater fish commonly collected on mud substrates on the outer continental shelf. Little is known concerning its ecology (Ref. 26268).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2018-10-12. Resilience: High (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
References
Munroe 1992 (as Symphurus species C, in part)
Munroe 1998
Munroe 2002f
Breder, C.M. and D.E. Rosen (1966) Modes of reproduction in fishes. T.F.H. Publications, Neptune City, New Jersey. 941 p.
Munroe, T.A. (1998) Systematics and ecology of tonguefishes of the genus Symphurus (Cynoglossidae: Pleuronectiformes) from the western Atlantic Ocean. Fish. Bull. 96(1):1-182.
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.
Comments On Symphurus billykrietei