Species: Astroscopus zephyreus, Pacific stargazer
Astroscopus zephyreus Gilbert & Starks in Gilbert, 1897
Pacific stargazer
Body robust; head large, flattened above, partly covered with skin; eyes small, on top of head; a pair of electric organs under 2 triangular to square scaleless areas behind eyes; front nostril round, before eye, rear nostril with crescent shaped groove, both nostrils with fringed margins; mouth large, nearly vertical, fringed; spine behind upper corner of operculum blunt and skin covered; 2 close-together dorsal fins, 1st with IV sharp spines; anal fin without spines; body covered with scales; scales in midlateral series about 80.
Greyish brown on dorsal half of head and body, with numerous small white spots; whitish on operculum and lower half of body; fins dusky to blackish, tail fin with white stripes.
Size: grows to about 56 cm.
Inhabits sandy bottoms.
Depth: 15-385 m.
Southern California to the Gulf of California to Peru.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
-
- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom
- Bottom only
- Habitat
-
- Soft bottom only
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Sand & gravel
- FishBase Habitat
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- Demersal
- Feeding Group
-
- No Data
- Carnivore
- Diet
-
- Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
- No Data
- Bony fishes
- Egg Type
-
- Pelagic larva
- No data
- Pelagic
- Global Endemism
-
- East Pacific endemic
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- All species
- Regional Endemism
-
- All species
- TEP endemic
- 3 provinces (Cortez + Mexican + Panamic) endemic
- Continent only
- Continent
- Continental TEP endemic
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- South Temperate (Peruvian Province )
- North Temperate (Californian Province &/or Northern Gulf of California)
- Northern Subtropical (Cortez Province + Sinaloan Gap)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 56
- Depth Range Min
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- 15
- Depth Range Max
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- 385
