Common Name
Bearded Toadfish
Year Described
Meek & Hildebrand, 1928
Identification
Dorsal Fin: III, 31-34
Anal Fin: 25-28
Pectoral Fin: 20-22
Pelvic Fin: I, 2-3
Vertebrae: 11-12 precaudal, 28-29 caudal
Lateral Line: 32-38 upper, 27-34 lower
Head flattened. No plumose tentacle above eye. Axillary pore present behind pectoral fin. No cirri between eyes. Barbels around mouth branched (shorter and thicker than S. johnsoni). Barbels very bushy; making outline of head indistinct. Pectoral glands absent.
Color
Body light brown with extensive dark brown mottling, banding, and blotching. Belly white with brown mottling. Fins also heavily mottled.
Size
Maximum size to 370mm SL.
Habitat
Benthic. Coastal waters around rocky and coral reefs.
Range
Western Caribbean: Honduras to Panama
References
Collette, B.B. 1974. A review of the coral toadfishes of the genus Sanopus with descriptions of two new species from Cozumel Island, Mexico. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington v. 87 (no. 18): 185-204, Pl. 1.
Collette, B.B. 1983. Two new species of coral toadfishes, family Batrachoididae, genus Sanopus, from Yucatan, Mexico, and Belize. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington v. 96 (no. 4): 719-724.
Robins, C.R. & W.A. Starck II. 1965. Opsanus astrifer, a new toadfish from British Honduras. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington v. 78: 247-250.