Teleostei (teleosts) >
Ovalentaria/misc (Various families in series Ovalentaria) >
Opistognathidae (Jawfishes)
Etymology: Opistognathus: Greek, opisthe = behind + Greek, gnathos = jaw (Ref. 45335); to the very elongate upper jaw of the type species of the genus, Opistognathus nigromarginatus (Ref. 128653).
Eponymy: Dr D D Whitehurst was a collector of specimens for the Smithsonian Institution, including the type of this species. (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 1 - 12 m (Ref. 9710). Tropical; 32°N - 7°N, 95°W - 59°W
Western Atlantic: southern Florida, USA and Bahamas to northern South America.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 14.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6937)
Dorsal spines (total): 11; Dorsal soft rays (total): 14 - 15; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 13 - 14. The dark spot (deep greenish blue in life) of the dorsal fin usually found between the 2nd and 4th or 5th dorsal spines; body densely mottled with dark brown and flecked with blackish; caudal fin and posterior part of dorsal fin are yellow with rows of small blackish spots (Ref. 13442).
Inhabits rock and sand bottoms or the eroding edges of weed beds. Egg mass incubated in mouth of males (Ref. 5521).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Are mouthbrooders (Ref. 39363).
Böhlke, J.E. and C.C.G. Chaplin, 1993. Fishes of the Bahamas and adjacent tropical waters. 2nd edition. University of Texas Press, Austin. (Ref. 5521)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial
Tools
Special reports
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 25.5 - 28.2, mean 27.4 °C (based on 651 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00389 (0.00180 - 0.00842), b=3.12 (2.94 - 3.30), in cm total length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.7 ±0.5 se; based on diet studies.
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref.
124155): Calcium = 111 [58, 172] mg/100g; Iron = 0.695 [0.404, 1.162] mg/100g; Protein = 18.5 [17.4, 19.6] %; Omega3 = 0.0896 [, ] g/100g; Selenium = 23.5 [10.6, 49.5] μg/100g; VitaminA = 133 [44, 389] μg/100g; Zinc = 1.84 [1.23, 2.60] mg/100g (wet weight);
