Common Name
Orangeback Bass
Year Described
Gunther, 1880
Identification
Dorsal Fin: X, 10
Anal Fin: III, 6-7
Pelvic Fin: I, 5
Pectoral Fin: 13-17
Caudal Fin: 13-15 branched rays
Lateral Line Scales: 46-50
Gill Rakers: 15-18
Vertebrae: 10 precaudal, 14 caudal; 24 total
Serranus defined by Robins & Starck (1961) with the following set of characters. Supramaxilla absent. Maxilla not covered by lachrymal. Premaxillary with a dorsal expansion. Teeth present on dentary, premaxilla, vomer, and palatine. Preopercle serrated. Opercle with three spines. Dorsal fin continuous. Caudal fin with 17 principal rays. Branchiostegal rays number 7. Snout, jaw area, and brachiostegal area naked. Scales encroach on bases of median fin membranes. Lateral line arched and continuous.
Body elongate and compressed. Snout shorter than eye. Maxilla exposed. Accessory bone absent. Middle opercular spine straight. Tail edge slightly emarginate. Scales relatively large and strongly ctenoid. Top of head without scales. 10-12 scale rows on cheek.
Color
Body white with complex red, orange, and yellow markings. A mid-body stripe runs from the snout to caudal peduncle and is broken up into distinct sections. The snout part of the stripe is red. The stripe is broken into two rectangular orange blotches behind eye which are surrounded by black. Mid-body the stripe is dark brown to black. The stripe finally grades into golden yellow irregular blotches onto the caudal peduncle. Ventrally, the head and belly have alternating small and large golden blotches suffused with orange near the ventral midline. Dorsum rosy red to salmon with pale blotches. Top of head with small red spots. Dorsal midline near dorsal fin base with small dark brown spots. Spiny dorsal fin with a line of orange spots over a pale base color. Rest of fin pale with two lines of black spots distally and basally. Rest of fins pale yellowish. Eye yellow to reddish.
Size
Maximum size to 90mm SL.
Habitat
Benthic on corals reefs from 4-115m.
Range
North Carolina and Bermuda to S. Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea.
References
McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. 2005. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Volume 2: Scorpaeniformes to Tetraodontiformes. University of Texas Press, Austin. i-viii +1-1004.
Robins, C.R. & W.A., Starck II. 1961. Materials for a revision of Serranus and related fish genera. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia v. 113 (no. 11): 259-314.