Species: Synodus saurus, Atlantic Lizardfish, Bluestripe Lizardfish

Synodus saurus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Bluestripe Lizardfish, Atlantic Lizardfish

Body relatively robust; snout long pointed, longer than eye; mouth large, extending well past eye; no fleshy knob on tip of chin; many rows of fine pointed teeth on jaws, tongue and (in 1 band) on side of roof of mouth; fins without spines; one dorsal fin in mid-body, with a small skin-flap fin behind it above anal fin; anal 10-13 rays; pelvics on abdomen behind pectoral base, 8 rays, inner rays distinctly longer than outer rays; 57-60 lateral line scales; 3 rows of scales between dorsal fin and lateral line; bases of short rays at top and bottom of tail fin completely scaleless.

A series of wavy dark bars on back extend down below the midline, those not hourglass shaped; blue and salmon lines along body; no dark spot at top corner of gill cover; tail fin without bars.

Size: 40 cm.

Habitat: demersal on mud or sand bottoms.

Depth: 1-400 m; usually < 20 m.

Both sides of the Atlantic, and into the Mediterranean; Bermuda, the Bahamas and islands of the eastern Caribbean.