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Leiostomus xanthurus
Diagnosis
Diagnosis_Genus: Leiostomus Lacepède. Jaws devoid of teeth, and entirely hidden under the lips; lips are extensible; the mouth placed beneath the muzzle; no serration or prickles to the opercula; two drosal fins.
Diagnosis_Species: Leiostomus xanthurus Lacepède. Ten rays at the first fin of the back, which is triangular; thirty-two at the second; fourteen to that of the anal fin; caudal are notched crescent, scales are rounded.
Other description: Leiostomus xanthurus is a moderately deep-bodied, compressed fish with an elevated back. Body color is typically bluish-gray dorsally, fading to golden yellow or yellow-tan ventrally. A set of 12 -15 dark streaks run obliquely from the dorsal surface down the sides to about mid-body. These tend to fade with age. Fins are typically pale yellow in color. The head is short, with a small, inferior mouth. The maxilla extends to approximately the middle of the eye. The dorsal fin is continuous, with a notch separating the spinous portion from the soft rays. There are 9-11 dorsal spines, and 29-35 soft rays. The anal fin has 2 spines and 12-13 rays. The caudal peduncle is moderately deep, and the caudal fin is notched. A large black spot is set above the upper edge of the gill cover. There are 72-77 lateral line scales (Smithsonian Marine Station).
Body_adult_common: 25 cm
Body_adult_max: 36 cm
Body_adult_1 year_length: 14.98 cm (Smithsonian Marine Station)
Body_adult_2 year_length: 22.09 cm (Smithsonian Marine Station)
Body_adult_3 year_length: 27.94 cm (Smithsonian Marine Station)
Body_eggs_average_length: 0.80 mm (Powell & Gordy, 1980)
Body_eggs_length: 0.72-0.87 mm (Powell & Gordy, 1980)
Body_larvae_hatching_length: 1.6-1.7 mm (Powell & Gordy, 1980)
Body_larvae_preflexion_length: 2.35-4.05 mm (Ditty, 1989)
Body_larvae_flexion_length: 4.28-4.80 mm (Ditty, 1989)
Weight_max: 450 g (Fishbase)
Sequence_cytb: DQ060511 (He et al. 2012)
Sequence_16SrRNA: FJ175394, EU239813 (He et al. 2012)
Etymology
Leiostomus: Greek, leios = smooth + Greek, stoma = mouth
Type species
The type species of the genus Leiostomus is Leiostomus xanthurus (Lacepède, 1802).
Ecology
Leiostomus xanthurus lives in Western Atlantic: Massachusetts to northern Mexico; absent in southern Florida (Fishbase).
Leiostomus xanthurus mature at 1-2 years of age, and adults migrate offshore to spawn in the fall. Spawning occurs from October to March, peaking in December-January on the east coast and during January-February in the Gulf. Larvae are transported to estuarine nursery areas where they metamorphose into juveniles (McRae et al., 1997).
Substrate: water
Salinity: marine
Salinity: brackish
Depth: demersal (Fishbase)
Habitat: coastal
Habitat: estuarine
Depth: 200 m (McRae et al., 1997)
Migratory: diadromous_migration (catadromous) (McRae et al., 1997)
Causality_of_migration: sexual_reproduction (McRae et al., 1997)
Temporality_of_migration: seasonal (during fall) (McRae et al., 1997)
Oxygen_level: oxic
Temperature:17-25°C (Smithsonian Marine Station)
Life cycle
The maximum life span listed for the species Leiostomus xanthurus is 4 years (Fishbase).
No sexual dimorphism (Fishbase).
Longevity: more than 3 years
Generation_time: 1 to 3 years (McRae et al., 1997)
Reproduction_mode: sexual (oviparous)
Spawning_method: external fertilization in the water column
Fertility_period: seasonal (October to early March) (Warlen & Chester, 1985)
Feeding behaviour
Mode of locomotion
Original description
Reference(s)
Attached phylogeny
Observation site(s)
SYMBIONTS
| Association with... | Region origin | Name of site | In reference... |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amyloodinium ocellatum | New York Aquarium |
(1936) The morphology, cytology and life-history of Oodinium ocellatum Brown, a dinoflagellate parasite on marine fishes. Zoologica, N. Y. 21:129-161. |
|
| Amyloodinium ocellatum | Gulf Coast Research Laboratory |
(1980) Studies on Amyloodinium ocellatum (Dinoflagellata) in Mississippi Sound: Natural and Experimental Hosts. Gulf Research Reports 6:403-413. |
