Species: Eleotris picta, Spotted Sleeper

Eleotris picta Kner, 1863
Spotted Sleeper
Elongate, stout body; head broad, depressed; small eyes; a distinct knob at front and rear angles of eye; snout short, blunt; mouth large, broad, very oblique, lower jaw strongly protruding; teeth small, conical, no canines, in several rows on jaws; a strong, forward-pointing spine embedded in the skin at the lower rear corner of the preopercle; gill membranes broadly joined to throat, with 6 rays; two separate dorsal fins, V-VI + I, 7-8, base of 2nd dorsal < distance from the end of that base to tail fin; pectoral fin 18; anal fin I, 7-8; pelvics I, 5, long, completely separated; tail base long; tail fin round; scales small, 60-68 along side, 21-26 rows between origin of 2nd dorsal and anal fin base, 33-40 rows around tail base, smooth at front, rough at rear; top of head (except tip of snout), cheeks and opercle scaled; tiny scales between eyes; no lateral line.
Head, body and fins dark blackish to greenish brown, with a paler belly; no dark spot on upper pectoral base. Juveniles with the lower 2/3 of the head, body and tail fin dark blackish brown; the top of the head and back are cream.
Size: reaches 53 cm.
Habitat: adults of these fishes are largely restricted to freshwater; juveniles are often found in low salinity intertidal areas of river mouths.
Depth: 0-5 m.
Native to the tropical eastern Pacific; found in Caribbean Panama & Venezuela, where it was probably introduced in ballast water.

High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Brackish
- Freshwater
- Non Marine
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
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- Bottom
- Bottom only
- Habitat
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- Soft bottom only
- Estuary
- Freshwater
- Mangrove
- FishBase Habitat
-
- Demersal
- Feeding Group
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- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
-
- Data
- Bony fishes
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Egg Type
-
- Benthic
- Data
- Pelagic larva
- Global Endemism
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- All species
- Exotic (Introduced)
- Greater Caribbean non-endemic
- Regional Endemism
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- Continent
- Continent only
- Exotic (Introduced)
- GC non-endemic
- All species
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 53
- Depth Range Min
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- 0
- Depth Range Max
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- 5