Teleostei (teleosts) >
Eupercaria/misc (Various families in series Eupercaria) >
Moronidae (Temperate basses)
Etymology: Dicentrarchus: Greek, di = two + Greek, kentron = sting + Greek, archos = anus (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Linnaeus.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; freshwater; brackish; demersal; oceanodromous; depth range 10 - 100 m (Ref. 9987). Subtropical; 8°C - 24°C (Ref. 4944); 72°N - 11°N, 19°W - 42°E (Ref. 54221)
Eastern Atlantic: Norway to Morocco, the Canary Islands and Senegal. Also known from the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Absent from White, Barents, Baltic and Caspian Seas (Ref. 59043).
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm 36.1, range 23 - 46 cm
Max length : 103 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 40637); common length : 50.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6916); max. published weight: 12.0 kg (Ref. 1468); max. reported age: 30 years (Ref. 59043)
Dorsal spines (total): 8 - 10; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12 - 13; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 10 - 12. Diagnosis: head with cycloid scales above; mouth moderately protractile (Ref. 231). Vomerine teeth only anteriorly (Ref. 231), in a crescentic band (Ref. 231, 57391). Scales on interorbital space cycloid (Ref. 57391). Posterior edge of opercle finely serrated, lower edge with strong forward- directed denticles (Ref. 231). 2 flat opercular spines (Ref. 231, 57391). Young with some dark spots on upper part of body (Ref. 231).
Adults manifest demersal behavior, inhabit coastal waters down to about 100 m depth but more common in shallow waters (Ref. 54221, 57391). Found in the littoral zone on various kinds of bottoms on estuaries, lagoons and occasionally rivers. They enter coastal waters and river mouths in summer, but migrate offshore in colder weather and occur in deep water during winter in the northern range. Young fish form school, but adults appear to be less gregarious (Ref. 9987). Feed chiefly on shrimps and mollusks, also on fishes (Ref. 5990). Juveniles feed on invertebrates, taking increasingly more fish with age. Adults piscivorous . (Ref. 59043). Spawn in batches (Ref. 51846). Spawning takes place in the spring near the British Isles, and earlier in its southern range. Eggs are pelagic (Ref. 35388). Marketed fresh or smoked (Ref. 9987). Highly sought by sport fishermen (Ref. 30578).
Spawn in groups. Eggs are pelagic. In the Mediterranean, first sexual maturity occurs generally between 2 and 4 years of age while in the Atlantic sexual maturity happens a little later (males between 4-7 years and females between 5-8 years). Spawning happens just once a year and it tends to be in winter, although in southern areas it can occur in spring. Eggs have 1-2 fat drops that fuse about 12 hours after laying. Embryo development lasts about three days at 13-14°C and larval development about 40 days at 19°C. Egg size 1.1-1.5 mm, larval length at hatching 3 mm.
Smith, C.L., 1990. Moronidae. p. 692-694. In J.C. Quero, J.C. Hureau, C. Karrer, A. Post and L. Saldanha (eds.) Check-list of the fishes of the eastern tropical Atlantic (CLOFETA). JNICT, Lisbon; SEI, Paris; and UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 2. (Ref. 6916)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes
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