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Species: Calamus nodosus, Knobbed porgy

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head deep, profile v steep
snout & cheeks purple + yellow spots
blue line under eye
pectoral base - diffuse blue spot
knob over nostrils
no enlarged canines
pectoral long

Calamus nodosus Randall & Caldwell, 1966

Knobbed porgy

Body compressed, oval, very deep; head deep, upper profile very steep (57-65 degrees); forehead humped in large adults; rear nostril slit-like; a well developed bony knob above rear nostril; large mouth with thick lips, heavy lower jaw;  bone under front of eye overlapsrear bone of top jaw; equal-sized (none enlarged) canine teeth at front of both jaws; molar teeth on sides of jaws (3 rows above, 2 below); preopercle border smooth; dorsal fin low, XII-XIII, 12 (11-13); anal fin short, III short spines, 10-11 soft rays; pectoral fins 14 (rarely15) rays, long, reaching to or past front third of anal fin base; cheeks and opercles scaly, but no scales on snout or between the eye and mouth; lateral line scales 55-57.

Pinkish silver, with the scale centers iridescent bluish; snout and cheeks purplish with bronze spots; an iridescent blue stripe under eye; a diffuse blue spot on upper base of pectoral fin.

Size: to 54 cm.

Habitat: lives on reefs, hard bottoms and adjacent sand, rubble and seagrass bottoms.

Depth: 9-108 m.

N Carolina to the tip of the Yucatan peninsula.


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Salinity
  • Marine
  • Marine Only
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore Only
  • Inshore
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
Habitat
  • Submerged vegetation
  • Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
  • Rocks
  • Reef and soft bottom
  • Corals
  • Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
  • Sand & gravel
  • Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
FishBase Habitat
  • Reef Associated
  • Demersal
Feeding Group
  • Data
  • Carnivore
Diet
  • Data
  • Mobile benthic worms
  • Mobile benthic gastropods/bivalves
  • Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
  • Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
Egg Type
  • Data
  • Pelagic
  • Pelagic larva
Global Endemism
  • West Atlantic Endemic
  • Greater Caribbean endemic
  • All species.
Regional Endemism
  • All species..
  • Extends North of GC
  • GC endemic
  • Continent only
  • Continent
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
  • Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
IUCN Red List
  • Least concern
  • Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Depth Range Min
  • 9
Depth Range Max
  • 108
Length Max
  • 54