Common Name
Bladefin Bass
Year Described
Robins, 1967
Identification
Dorsal Fin: VIII, 9
Anal Fin: III, 7
Pectoral Fin: 15
Pelvic Fin: I, 5
Gill Rakers: 26 (first arch)
Vertebrae: 24 (10 precaudal, 14 caudal)
Preopercle and opercle each with three spines. Body and cheeks with scales. Rest of head naked. Lateral line absent. Spiny dorsal fin with a greatly elongated second spine that is broadened at the tip (first spine is tiny and vestigial). Spiny and soft dorsal fins separated by a narrow gap. Pelvic fin long. Soft dorsal, anal, and caudal fins rounded. Scale rows number ~65. Scales around caudal peduncle number 42.
Color
Body whitish, salmon, or rosy red. A reddish brown to red stripe runs along the top of the head from the eye to the base of the first dorsal fin. The nape has a contrasting white line running between the eyes and terminating at the dorsal fin. Another band runs from the soft dorsal to the anal fin, and the pigment extends onto the basal half of each fin. another blotch is centered on the caudal fin and posterior caudal peduncle and takes up most of the caudal fin except for a whitish border. The second dorsal spine is a bright contrasting white. The soft dorsal and anal fins are whitish translucent to orangish with white borders. The pelvic fin is white.
Size
Maximum size to 40mm SL.
Habitat
Found on deep reefs over 150m.
Range
Scattered records: in the western Caribbean Sea, off Curacao, and a larvae taken off New York (Baldwin & Johnson, 1991).
References
Baldwin, C.C. & G.D. Johnson. 1991. A Larva of the Poorly Known Serranld Fish Jeboehlkia gladifer (Teleostei: Serranldae: Epinephelinae). Fishery Bulletin 89(3): 535-537.
Robins, C.R. 1967. The status of the serranid fish Liopropoma aberrans, with the description of a new, apparently related genus. Copeia 1967 (no. 3): 591-595.