Species: Achirus scutum, Network sole
Achirus scutum (Günther, 1862)
Network sole
Body rounded; eyes on right side; snout rounded; mouth small, arched, a little below snout; lower lip on eyed side fringed; front margin of head with short tentacles; rear edge of preopercle covered with skin, visible as a superficial groove; gill openings wide, united before pelvic fins; an opening connects gill chambers on both sides; dorsal origin ~ above eye; dorsal rays 53-59; anal rays 42-44; pectoral rays 3-4; pelvic on eye side fused to anal; pectorals present or absent; lateral line from head to tail, straight, with perpendicular branches running across body; body covered with rough scales; scales on eyed side without black hair-like filaments; lateral line with > 82 scales.
Dark brown with ~ 20 tan or whitish bars, these generally wavy and becoming branched or joined with adjacent bars to form a maze-like pattern; median fins with pale wavy bands.
Size: reaches 19 cm.
Inhabits flat sand or mud bottoms of bays and estuaries; enters freshwater streams.
Depth: 5-45 m.
The SE Gulf of California to Peru.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
-
- Freshwater
- Marine
- Brackish
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore Only
- Inshore
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom
- Bottom only
- Habitat
-
- Estuary
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Mud
- Freshwater
- Sand & gravel
- Soft bottom only
- FishBase Habitat
-
- Demersal
- Feeding Group
-
- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
-
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Bony fishes
- Data
- Mobile benthic worms
- Egg Type
-
- Pelagic larva
- No data
- Pelagic
- Global Endemism
-
- East Pacific endemic
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- All species
- Regional Endemism
-
- Mexican + Panamic provinces endemic
- TEP endemic
- Continental TEP endemic
- Continent only
- All species
- Continent
- Residency
-
- Resident
- Climate Zone
-
- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- IUCN Red List
-
- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
-
- Not listed
- Length Max
-
- 19
- Depth Range Min
-
- 5
- Depth Range Max
-
- 45
