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Species: Brachygenys chrysargyreum, Smallmouth grunt

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elongate
5-6 yellow stripes, fins yellow
juv: middle stripe front 1/2 body, C base - thin upcurved spot
D XII, 13 (12-14)
scale rows below LL horizontal
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This Species (12) This Genus (1) Similar Species (3)

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Brachygenys chrysargyreum (Gunther, 1859)

Smallmouth grunt

Body oblong, moderately elongate, compressed; body depth 28-33% 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 30-33; dorsal fin continuous, with small to moderate notch in middle, XII, 13 (12-14); anal rays III, 9 (9-10), 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 49-51; scale rows below lateral line horizontal to body axis.

Adult: silvery grey; head and body with 5-6 yellow stripes; all fins except pectorals yellow; inside mouth red. Juvenile: 3 dark stripes: 1 from snout through eye to tail base, ending in an upwardly bent elongate black spot on tail fin base; 1 from top of eye back along front ½ of lateral line; 1 from above eye along top of back.

Size: attains 23 cm.

Habitat: on reefs and hard bottoms; juveniles in seagrass beds.

Depth: 0-42 m.

Florida to the S Caribbean. Its brazilian sister species is H. squamipinnis.

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Species Data Create Report Export as Word File Export as Excel File
Salinity
  • Marine
  • Marine Only
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore
  • Inshore Only
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
Habitat
  • Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
  • Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
  • Rocks
  • Reef and soft bottom
  • Corals
  • Submerged vegetation
  • Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
FishBase Habitat
  • Reef Associated
Feeding Group
  • Planktivore
  • Data
  • Carnivore
Diet
  • Sessile worms
  • Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
  • Mobile benthic gastropods/bivalves
  • Zooplankton
  • Data
  • Mobile benthic worms
Egg Type
  • Pelagic
  • Pelagic larva
  • Data
Global Endemism
  • All species.
  • Greater Caribbean non-endemic
  • West Atlantic Endemic
Regional Endemism
  • GC non-endemic
  • Continent
  • Island (s)
  • All species..
  • Continent + Island (s)
  • Extends South of GC
  • Also in Brazil
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
  • Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
IUCN Red List
  • Listed
  • Least concern
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 23
Depth Range Min
  • 0
Depth Range Max
  • 42