Taractichthys longipinnis
Bigscale Pomfret
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GNR
Collection Details
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Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Perciformes (Perciformes, Also Called the Acanthopteri)
Bramidae (Pomfrets)
Taractichthys
Taractichthys longipinnis (Bigscale Pomfret)
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
Short and deep bodied, with dorsal and anal fins relatively stiff, covered with scales, and falcate. Anterior profile of head is strongly to moderately convex, becoming less convex with age. Interorbital region is arched. Posterior naris is slitlike and closer to eye than to anterior naris. Mouth is terminal, with lower jaw projecting beyond upper jaw and upper jaw extending beyond center of eye to posterior margin of orbit. Jaw teeth are pointed, conical, recurved, and arranged in bands, with anterior inner teeth largest. Palatine has narrow band of teeth, but vomer lacks teeth. Gill rakers on first arch number one to three on upper limb, one in corner, and five to eight on lower limb. Measurements are expressed as percent of SL: head length 28%–34%, snout length 7%–10%, eye diameter 5%–10%, snout to dorsal fin origin 41%–47%, snout to anal fin origin 53%–60%, body depth 54%–61%. Pectoral fin has 21 rays. Dorsal fin originates between pectoral fin base and anal fin origin and has 33 to 38 rays. Anal fin has 27 to 30 rays. Caudal fin is emarginate in juveniles and forked in adults and has well-developed precaudal pits. Scales of head and belly lack attached spines on posterior margin, but remainder of scales have spines. Scales in horizontal series number 39 to 46. Lateral line is indistinct. Vertebrae number 44 to 47: 19 to 22 precaudal and 24 or 25 caudal.
Color is black, with pectoral and distal part of pelvic fin white and crescent border on caudal fin light.
Distribution
In the western Atlantic it occurs from Browns Bank, off Nova Scotia, and Bermuda to northern South America, including the northern and southern Gulf of Mexico and Puerto Rico.
Habitat Associations
Tropical to temperate Atlantic
Biology
Maximum known size is about 910 mm TL.
Generally oceanic and presumably epipelagic. Often solitary but occasionally found in small schools close to shore (Ref. 82736). Feed on shrimps and squids (Ref. 82736). Young are present in all seasons (Ref. 6697). Flesh considered very good (Ref. 3576).
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2013-01-29. Resilience: Very low (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: minor commercial.
References
Mead 1957
Mead 1972
Robins and Ray 1986
Smith 1986a
Boschung 1992
Thompson and Russell 1996
Smith-Vaniz et al. 1999
Thompson 2002a
Haedrich, R.L. (1981) Bramidae. In W. Fischer, G. Bianchi and W.B. Scott (eds.) FAO species identification sheets for fishery purposes. Eastern Central Atlantic (fishing areas 34, 47 (in part) . Vol. 1.
Smith, M.M. (1986) Bramidae. p. 633-636. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Gomes, J. (1990) Bramidae. p. 758-764. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNCT, Lisbon; SEI, Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 2.
Haedrich, R.L. (1986) Bramidae. p. 847-853. In P.J.P. Whitehead, M.-L. Bauchot, J.-C. Hureau, J. Nielsen and E. Tortonese (eds.) Fishes of the north-eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 2.
McMillan, P.J., M.P. Francis, G.D. James, L.J. Paul, P.J Marriott, E. Mackay, B.A. Wood, L.H. Griggs, H. Sui and F. Wei (2011) New Zealand fishes. Volume 1: A field guide to common species caught by bottom and midwater fishing. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report No. 68. 329 p.
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