Species: Albula vulpes, Bonefish

Albula vulpes (Linnaeus, 1758)

Bonefish

Body elongate, fusiform; overhanging snout moderately conical, projects a little beyond mouth; mouth small, not reaching under eye; very small teeth in bands at front of jaws, patches of small molariform teeth on the roof and floor of the mouth; gill rakers 7-11 + 11-13 (18-23); branchiostegal rays of membrane under throat 13-14 (10-14); fins without spines; one short-based dorsal fin, at midbody, 18-19 rays; anal short (8-9 rays), well behind dorsal; dorsal and anal fins without a filamentous ray; pectoral fins low on the body, 17-20; pelvic fins on the abdomen, under the dorsal fin, well behind pectorals, 9-11; tail fin deeply forked; lateral line scales 68-77; scales above lateral line 8-10, below lateral line 6-7, around tail base 15-16, before dorsal fin 14-24; lateral line straight, full length of body.

Silvery bluish to greenish above, bright silver below; tip of snout with an oval dark spot on middle of underside, a pair of diagonal dark marks at tip. Juveniles sandy colored, with 7-8 indistinct dark saddles on back.

Reaches 77 cm.

Lives on soft bottoms inshore, mainly marine, but also mangrove lagoons and estuaries, and uncommonly in freshwater.

Depth range: 0-84 m.

Distribution: N Carolina (occasionally to New Brunswick) south throughout the Greater Caribbean, also in Brazil.

Note: very similar in form to A goreensis and A cf. vulpes, but all three are genetically distinct