Common Name
Jamaica Weakfish
Year Described
Vaillant & Bocourt, 1883
Identification
Dorsal Fin: X; 1, 23-27
Anal Fin: II, 8-10
Pectoral Fin:
Gill Rakers: 9-13 (first arch)
Color
Body silvery with faint oblique lines above lateral line. Fins dusky yellow with dorsal and caudal fins being darkest. Upper rays of pectoral fin darker than rest. Inside of opercular flap blackish.
Size
Maximum size to 50cm TL.
Habitat
Coastal waters (1-120m) over soft bottoms.
Range
Belize to northeastern South America and S. Brazil, and also through the Antilles north to Hispaniola.
References
Chao, N.L. 2002. Sciaenidae (pp. 1583-1653). In: Carpenter. 2002. The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Vol. 3: Bony fishes part 2 (Opistognathidae to Molidae). FAO Species Identification Guides for Fisheries Purposes. American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special Publication No. 5. FAO of the U.N., Rome.
Other Notes
The only Cynoscion species found in the Caribbean islands.