Shorefishes of the Greater Caribbean online information system

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Species: Bembrops quadrisella, Saddleback Duckbill, Saddleback Flathead

All Families:   All Genera:   All Species:

snout short ( < / = eye)
D1: front base spot & outer stripe black
D2: black front base + white stripes
D2 16
A dusky/clear, outer ~1/2 black
C: rear & bottom edges dark, female top base- ocellus
top jaw tentacle short
LL ~60-61

Bembrops quadrisella Thompson & Suttkus, 1998

Saddleback Duckbill, Saddleback Flathead

Body relatively robust; head depressed; snout short (=/>eye); eye large, above, close-set; lower jaw strongly projecting, often with lower teeth exposed; top jawbone with a short (2.1 (1.4-2.7)% SL) rear tentacle; jaw teeth simple; teeth present on center and sides of roof of mouth; gill rakers 20 (19-23); 2 diverging spines at top of operculum, a 3rd at lower corner, with an elongate flap behind it, preoperculum with 2 broad spines at its angle; two dorsal fins, VI (front spines crowded), 2nd spine not elongate in male + 16 (15-17) anal fin 0, 18 (16-19); pectoral fin long and wide, 26-27 (25-28)rays; pelvic fins I, 5, under operculum, wide between those fins; tail fin straight, with 10-11 branched rays; scales rough on head and body; lateral line arched at front; a spine at front of lateral line, a prominent keel on first few lateral line scales; lateral line 60-61 (57-65) scales; no scales on top surface of eye.

Upper body with 4 wide black saddles between origin of dorsal fin and end of tail base; 1st dorsal fin with a black spot at base of 1st membrane, a black stripe near the outer margin with triangular extensions down onto membranes 1 & 2, scattered dark dots over much of rest of membrane; 2nd dorsal fin with dusky membranes, white stripes and some black at base of front membrane; tail fin of female with ocellus on upper fin base, of male with rear and bottom margins dark; anal fin of female with white pigment on membranes, outer ½-2/3 of fin black.

Reaches 26.8 cm.

On the bottom.

Depth range: 290-914 m.

Central Caribbean to Suriname.


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Salinity
  • Marine
  • Marine Only
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore
  • Inshore Only
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
  • Bottom only
Habitat
  • Soft bottom only
  • Mud
FishBase Habitat
  • Bathydemersal
Feeding Group
  • Carnivore
  • Data
Diet
  • Data
  • Bony fishes
  • Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
Egg Type
  • Data
  • Pelagic
  • Pelagic larva
Global Endemism
  • All species
  • Greater Caribbean endemic
Regional Endemism
  • Continent
  • Continent + Island (s)
  • Extends South of GC
  • GC endemic
  • Island (s)
  • All species
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
IUCN Red List
  • Not evaluated / Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 26.8
Depth Range Min
  • 290
Depth Range Max
  • 914