Species: Alphestes afer, Mutton hamlet
snout < eye
dark bars + dark & light spots
Alphestes afer (Bloch, 1793)
Mutton hamlet
Body deep, strongly compressed; head deep, with straight, oblique front profile; large eyes, close together on tip of snout; snout shorter than eye; preopercle serrated, with large forward-curving spine hidden at lower front corner; rear of top jaw exposed when mouth closed; roof of mouth with small teeth; 3-5 rows of small teeth on each jaw, a pair of small canines at front of both jaws, most of teeth movable; gill rakers 22-25; dorsal with XI spines, 17-29 rays, with little or no notch between spiny and soft parts; anal rays III,9; pectoral rays 16-17; tail rounded; flank scales smooth; 55-61 scales on lateral line.
Olive to light brown with darker brown blotches forming irregular bars on side; also numerous dark brown and pale spots, and larger pale blotches on head and body; iris red; pectoral fins with brown spots forming bars.
Size: reaches 33 cm.
Habitat: secretive, in sponges, rocks around seagrass.
Depth: 0-35 m.
Bermuda to Brazil; also found in the tropical E Atlantic.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
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- Inshore Only
- Inshore
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom
- Habitat
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- Submerged vegetation
- Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Rocks
- Reef and soft bottom
- Corals
- Sand & gravel
- Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
- FishBase Habitat
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- Reef Associated
- Feeding Group
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- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
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- Data
- Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Bony fishes
- Egg Type
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- Data
- Pelagic
- Pelagic larva
- Global Endemism
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- All species.
- Transatlantic (East+West Atlantic)
- Greater Caribbean non-endemic
- Regional Endemism
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- All species..
- Continent
- Extends South of GC
- Also in Brazil
- GC non-endemic
- Continent only
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
- Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
- Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Depth Range Min
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- 0
- Depth Range Max
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- 35
- Length Max
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- 33
