Teleostei (teleosts) >
Eupercaria/misc (Various families in series Eupercaria) >
Sciaenidae (Drums or croakers)
Etymology: Cynoscion: Greek, kyon = dog + Greek, odous = teeth + Greek, skion, skiaina = barbel, red mullet (Ref. 45335).
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; brackish; demersal; depth range 2 - 18 m (Ref. 1183). Subtropical; 39°N - 9°N, 98°W - 59°W
Western Atlantic: Maryland to northeastern Florida in the USA and throughout Gulf of Mexico. Reported from Campeche Bank in Mexico (Ref. 5733). Often misidentified as Cynoscion regalis (Ref. 3702).
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm 15.8, range 14 - 17 cm
Max length : 36.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3702); common length : 25.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3702); max. reported age: 1.20 years (Ref. 31629)
Dorsal spines (total): 11; Dorsal soft rays (total): 26 - 31; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 8 - 11; Vertebrae: 27. Colour greyish above and changing abruptly to silvery below. Back and upper sides sometimes with very faint irregular rows of spots. Dorsal fin dusky, other fins pale to yellowish. Mouth large, oblique, lower jaw projecting. Upper jaw with a pair of large canine-like teeth at tip. Lower jaw with a row of sharp enlarged inner-row teeth, widely spaced. Chin without barbels or pores. Snout with 2 marginal pores. Gas bladder with a pair of straight, horn-like anterior appendages. Soft portion of dorsal fin covered with small scales on basal half of in (Ref 51721).
Occurs usually over sandy bottoms in inshore waters along beaches and in river mouths. Feeds mainly on crustaceans and fishes.
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986. A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p. (Ref. 7251)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; gamefish: yes
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Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 23.4 - 28, mean 26.8 °C (based on 492 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01230 (0.00776 - 0.01949), b=3.01 (2.88 - 3.14), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.0 ±0.60 se; based on food items.
Generation time: 5.0 ( na - na) years. Estimated as median ln(3)/K based on 1
growth studies.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.22).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Moderate vulnerability (38 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref.
124155): Calcium = 88.6 [49.6, 178.0] mg/100g; Iron = 0.932 [0.487, 1.800] mg/100g; Protein = 19 [18, 21] %; Omega3 = 0.33 [0.18, 0.55] g/100g; Selenium = 16 [8, 33] μg/100g; VitaminA = 17.9 [5.9, 62.9] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.905 [0.638, 1.335] mg/100g (wet weight); based on
nutrient studies.
