Species: Haemulon boschmae, Bronzestripe Grunt

Haemulon boschmae (Metzelaar, 1919)

Bronzestripe Grunt

Body oblong, moderately elongate, compressed; body depth 26-30% of SL; head blunt, its upper profile convex; rear margin of bone under eye concealed by scales; mouth small to moderate, lips not fleshy; underside of chin with 2 large pores and a central groove; preoperculum finely serrated, without spines; gill rakers 30-36; dorsal fin continuous, with small to moderate notch in middle, XIII-XIV, 11-15; anal rays III, 7-9, 2nd and 3rd spines similar; tail forked; soft dorsal and anal densely scaled nearly to the edge of the fin; scales rough; scales over entire body and head except front of snout, lips and chin; pectoral fin scaled on base only; lateral-line scales 50-52; scale rows below lateral line mostly horizontal to body axis.

Adult: silvery to silvery grey; sides with narrow brownish stripes along scale rows, horizontal above lateral line, oblique below front part of line; an elongate black spot at base of caudal fin; fins grey; inside mouth white. Juvenile: 3 brownish-orange stripes: one along upper head and back to end of dorsal fin base, one above eye back along lateral line converging with midlateral stripe under soft dorsal; mid-lateral stripe joins a double black spot at base of tail fin.

Size: attains 20 cm.

Habitat: forms schools above the bottom in sandy areas adjacent to reefs.

Depth: 1-90 m.

The southern Gulf of Mexico to Guyana.