Haemulon flavolineatum, the French grunt, is a species of grunt native to the western Atlantic Ocean from South Carolina and Bermuda to Brazil as well as the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. The French grunt travels in schools among coral and rocky reefs where it occurs at depths of from 0 to 60 metres
French grunts feed on invertebrates, such as krill. They tend to hunt in schools around sunset. After they finish feeding they return to the grass beds that they call their homes.
The sounds they make when grinding their teeth earned them their common name. They use their swim bladders to amplify this sound.
The smallmouth grunt is a small fish that can reach a maximum length of 23 cm, but the ones usually observed are rather 17 cm. It has a laterally compressed body with a forked caudal fin. Its background color is silver with five bronze-yellow horizontal lines on its sides. All fins are partially or completely yellow. And its vernacular name comes from the fact that it has the smallest mouth of its family.
The blue striped grunt commonly grows to a length of 20 to 25 cm (8 to 10 inches), and its maximum recorded length is 46 cm (18 inches). The maximum reported age is 12 years. It can weigh up to 750 grams. The head and the body are yellow with many narrow, horizontal blue stripes.
The schoolmaster snapper is a colorful, subtropical fish found over coral reef areas along the coasts of Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean, though it can range northward along the Atlantic coast of the United States.
The yellowtail snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) is an abundant species of snapper native to the western Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. Although they have been found as far north as Massachusetts, their normal range is along Florida south to the West Indies and Brazil. This species is mostly found around coral reefs, but may be found in other habitats.
The puddingwife wrasse, Halichoeres radiatus, is a species of wrasse native to the western Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina to Bermuda, through the West Indies and Gulf of Mexico, to offshore islands of Brazil, being absent from Brazilian coastal waters. It can be found on reefs at depths from 2 to 55 m (6.6 to 180.4 ft), with younger fish up to subadults being found in much shallower waters from 1 to 5 m (3.3 to 16.4 ft). This species can reach 51 cm (20 in) in total length, though most do not exceed 40 cm (16 in).
Thalassoma bifasciatum, the bluehead, bluehead wrasse or blue-headed wrasse, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a wrasse from the family Labridae. It is native to the coral reefs of the tropical waters of the western Atlantic Ocean. Individuals are small (less than 110 mm standard length) and rarely live longer than two years. They form large schools over the reef and are important cleaner fish in the reefs they inhabit.
The puddingwife wrasse, Halichoeres radiatus, is a species of wrasse native to the western Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina to Bermuda, through the West Indies and Gulf of Mexico, to offshore islands of Brazil, being absent from Brazilian coastal waters. It can be found on reefs at depths from 2 to 55 m (6.6 to 180.4 ft), with younger fish up to subadults being found in much shallower waters from 1 to 5 m (3.3 to 16.4 ft). This species can reach 51 cm (20 in) in total length, though most do not exceed 40 cm (16 in).
Commonly called doctorfish or doctorfish tang, reaching a maximum size of 39 centimetres (15 in) and 5.1 kilograms (11 lb), Acanthurus chirurgus gets its common name for the structures called "scalpels", which are found on either side of the caudal peduncle. The "scalpel" is used during fights with other doctorfish and as a defense mechanism against predators. Its coloration generally varies from blue-gray to dark brown. 10 to 12 vertical bars are always present, but often faint. The edges of the caudal, dorsal, and anal fins are blue. There is also a faint blue ring that can be seen encircling the "scalpel" on either side.
Acanthurus coeruleus is a surgeonfish found commonly in the Atlantic Ocean. It can grow up to 39 centimetres long. Common names include Atlantic blue tang, blue barber, blue doctor, blue doctorfish, blue tang, blue tang surgeonfish, yellow barber, and yellow doctorfish.
The hairy blenny, is a species of labrisomid blenny native to the Atlantic Ocean from the coast of the Americas to the African coast. This species prefers areas that give them crevices and holes to shelter in such as areas with rock or rubble substrates, reefs or beds of seagrass. They can be found in shallow water only a few centimeters deep to a depth of 10 metres (33 ft) though they are much rarer deeper than 5 metres (16 ft). Carnivorous, they prey on such animals as crustaceans, gastropods, echinoderms such as urchins and brittle stars, polychaete worms and other fishes. This species can reach a length of 23 centimetres).
Horse mackerel is a vague vernacular term for a range of species of fish throughout the English-speaking world. It is commonly applied to pelagic fishes, especially of the Carangidae (jack mackerels and scads) family, most commonly those of the genera Trachurus or Caranx, both for human consumption and for bait.
Mojarras are a common prey and bait fish in many parts of the world, including the South American coast and Caribbean islands as well as the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic coast of North America. These species tend to be difficult to identify in the field and often require microscopic examination. Most species exhibit a schooling behavior and tend to exploit the shallow water refugia associated with coastal areas presumably to avoid large-bodied predators, such as the lemon shark.
The bigeye scad (Selar crumenophthalmus) is an oceanic fish found in tropical regions around the globe. Other common names include purse-eyed scad, goggle-eyed scad, akule, chicharro, charrito ojón, jacks, matang baka, mushimas and coulirou. The bigeye scad is fished commercially, both for human consumption and for bait.
The mangrove snapper or gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus) is a species of snapper native to the western Atlantic Ocean from Massachusetts to Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean Sea. They can be found in a wide variety of habitats, including brackish and fresh waters. It is commercially important, as well as being sought as a game fish. Its color is typically greyish red, but it can change color from bright red to copper red. Mangrove snapper also prefer structure, such as docks, mangroves, shipwrecks, and debris. Most mangrove snapper in the open water are generally found near bottom structure or reefs. They can be found at depths from 5 to 180 m.
The mutton snapper (Lutjanus analis) is a species of snapper native to the Atlantic coastal waters of the Americas from Massachusetts to southern Brazil, including the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. They are particularly common in the Caribbean. They inhabit reef environments, with adults found in areas with rock or coral, while juveniles occur in sandy habitats with plentiful weed growth. They can be found at depths of from 25 to 90 m (82 to 295 ft), though most often between 40 and 70 m (130 and 230 ft). They have olive-tinted backs and red sides with a black spot between the lateral line and the dorsal fin and blue stripes on the head. This species can reach a length of 94 cm (37 in), though most do not exceed 50 cm (20 in).
The northern red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) is a species of snapper native to the western Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico, where it inhabits environments associated with reefs. This species is commercially important and is also sought-after as a game fish. The northern red snapper's body is very similar in shape to other snappers, such as the mangrove snapper, mutton snapper, lane snapper, and dog snapper. All feature a sloped profile, medium-to-large scales, a spiny dorsal fin, and a laterally compressed body. Northern red snapper have short, sharp, needle-like teeth, but they lack the prominent upper canine teeth found on the mutton, dog, and mangrove snappers.
The yellow goatfish (Mulloidichthys martinicus), also known as yellowsaddle, is a species of goatfish native to the Atlantic Ocean around the coasts of Africa and the Americas. This species can reach a length of 39.4 centimetres (15.5 in) TL, but most reach lengths only around 28 centimetres (11 in). They are of minor importance to local commercial fisheries, even though they have been reported to carry the ciguatera toxin.
Goatfishes are characterized by a pair of chin barbels (or "goatee"), which contain chemosensory organs and are used to probe the sand or holes in the reef for food. Their bodies are deep and elongated, with forked tails and widely separated dorsal fins. The first dorsal fin has 6-8 spines; the second dorsal has one spine and 8-9 soft rays, shorter than anal fin. Spines in anal fin 1 or 2, with 5-8 soft rays. They have 24 vertebrae. Many goatfishes are brightly colored. The largest species, the dash-and-dot goatfish (Parupeneus barberinus), grows to 60 cm in length; most species are less than half this size. Within the family are six genera and about eighty-six species.
Tilefishes are mostly small perciform marine fish comprising the family Malacanthidae. They are usually found in sandy areas, especially near coral reefs. Tilefish range in size from 11 cm (yellow tilefish, Hoplolatilus luteus) to 125 cm (great northern tilefish, Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps) and a weight of 30 kg. Generally shallow-water fish, tilefish are usually found at depths of 50–200 m in both temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. All species seek shelter in self-made burrows, caves at the bases of reefs, or piles of rock, often in canyons or at the edges of steep slopes. Either gravelly or sandy substrate may be preferred, depending on the species.
The horse-eye jack (Caranx latus), also known as the big-eye jack, is a game fish and minor commercial fish in the family Carangidae. Its appearance is similar to that of the crevalle jack, although the horse-eye jack's head is not as blunt. The horse-eye jack is known to feed on smaller fish and on many invertebrates, such as shrimp and crab.
The plate fish (Bothus lunatus) is a flounder in the genus Bothus, found in the warmer parts of the Atlantic including the Caribbean. Its typical habitat is sandy plains near coral reefs and it is able to change its colouring to make it well-camouflaged in this environment. It is sometimes known as the peacock flounder, a name also given to the closely related Bothus mancus from the Indo-Pacific.
The common snook (Centropomus undecimalis) is a species of marine fish in the family Centropomidae of the order Perciformes. The common snook is also known as the sergeant fish or robalo. It was originally assigned to the sciaenid genus Sciaena; Sciaena undecimradiatus and Centropomus undecimradiatus are obsolete synonyms for the species.
The lane snapper (Lutjanus synagris) is a species of snapper native to the western Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina to southern Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. It can be found in a wide range of habitats, though it prefers coral reefs and sandy areas with plentiful vegetation. It occurs at depths from 10 to 400 m (33 to 1,312 ft), most frequently between 21 and 70 m (69 and 230 ft). This species is silvery-pink to reddish in color, with short, irregular, pink and yellow lines on its sides; it has a diffuse black spot, about as large as the eye; the dorsal fin is centered above the lateral line; the outer margin of the caudal fin is blackish. Similar fish are the mutton snapper, Lutjanus analis, and the mangrove snapper, L. griseus. This species can reach a length of 60 cm (24 in), though most do not exceed 25 cm (9.8 in). The greatest recorded weight for this species is 3.5 kg (7.7 lb)
The Atlantic lizardfish is known to be found in a marine environment within a general demersal depth range of about 400 meters. They are more specifically found in a depth range of about 20 meters. This species is native to a subtropical climate. The maximum recorded length of the Atlantic lizardfish as an unsexed male is about 40 centimeters or about 15.74 inches. The distribution of this species occupies the areas of Eastern Atlantic, Morocco, Cape Verde, Azores, Mediterranean, Western Atlantic, Bermuda, Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, and the Leeward Islands. This species is mainly known to be found in insular waters and on top of sandy or sand-rock bottoms. The Atlantic lizardfish can be found occupying waters around islands. The Atlantic lizardfish keeps itself hidden and camouflaged by burrowing itself in the sand. While it is burrowed in the sand, this species reveals his eyes so that it can watch its prey and pounce when food is available.
The blackfin snapper (Lutjanus buccanella) is a species of snapper native to the western Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. It is a commercially important species, though it has been reported to carry the ciguatera toxin. Its color is typically a scarlet red with silvery undersides. It has a black crescent-shaped mark at the base of its pectoral fins. The fins are yellow to orange. This species can reach a length of 75 cm (30 in), though most do not exceed 50 cm (20 in). The greatest known weight for this species is 14 kg (31 lb). This species inhabits areas near reefs at depths of from 20 to 200 m (66 to 656 ft), usually between 80 and 150 m (260 and 490 ft). Juveniles tend to be found in shallower waters than adults, which tend to inhabit deeper water near drop-offs with sandy or rocky bottoms. Like other snapper, it is predatory and feeds primarily on smaller fish.
The trunkfish has small diffuse white spots. Two areas, located on the pectoral region and halfway between gills and posterior end of carapace, contain dark-edged hexagonal plates that together form chain-like markings. It can reach a length of 30–50 cm and weigh up to 3.3 kg. Boxfish are benthic feeders and will forage on seagrasses, crustaceans, mollusks, worms, tunicates and a variety of small benthic invertebrates.
Lactophrys triqueter also known as the smooth trunkfish, is a species of boxfish found on and near reefs in the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico and subtropical parts of the western Atlantic Ocean.
The scrawled cowfish (Acanthostracion quadricornis) is a species of boxfish native to the eastern Atlantic. They range in size from 8–15 inches (20–38 cm), with a maximum length of 18 inches (46 cm), and can be found at depths between 6 and 80 feet (1.8 and 24.4 m). It is common to occasional in Florida and Bahamas; occasional to uncommon in the Caribbean. It also occurs in the Gulf of Mexico, north to Massachusetts, Bermuda and south to Brazil in tropical and warm temperate waters.
Sargocentron coruscum, more commonly known as the reef squirrelfish, is a member of the family Holocentridae native to the western Atlantic Ocean from Florida, USA to northern South America. It lives over sandy and rocky substrates, as well as coral reefs, generally between 1 and 30 metres (3.3 and 98.4 ft) deep. It is a nocturnal predator, feeding primarily on shrimps, but will also eat crabs. It searches for food alone or in small schools. It can reach sizes of up to 15.0 centimetres (5.9 in) TL. When alarmed, it will hide in crevices between corals.
Longspine squirrelfish (Holocentrus rufus) are marine fish that live in coral reefs. The length of the longspine squirrelfish is up to 18 cm (7.8 inches). They are found along the south eastern coast of the United States to Northern South America and Brazil, as well as in-between locations such as Bermuda and the West Indies. They hide in or near dark recesses. They are territorial and defend their crevices with visual and acoustic displays. They are rare on shallow reefs. They are more abundant with increasing depth and are most abundant between thirty and seventy meters.
The juveniles are thin, silvery pelagics and seldom seen.
Holocentrus adscensionis is a squirrelfish of the family Holocentridae found in the Atlantic Ocean. Its range extends from North Carolina, USA to Brazil and throughout the Caribbean Sea in the Western Atlantic and from Gabon to Ascension Island in the Eastern Atlantic. It generally stays between 8 and 30 metres (26 and 98 ft) below the surface, but can be found at the surface or as deep as 180 metres (590 ft). It can reach up to 61 centimetres (24 in) TL in length, although it is more common for individuals to be around 25.0 centimetres (9.8 in) TL.
Holocentrus adscensionis is a squirrelfish of the family Holocentridae found in the Atlantic Ocean. Its range extends from North Carolina, USA to Brazil and throughout the Caribbean Sea in the Western Atlantic and from Gabon to Ascension Island in the Eastern Atlantic.
This fish can reach 25 centimeters in length, but its common length is around 15 centimeters. The dorsal fin is divided into two parts, the anterior one having two long, curved spines and the posterior one thirty-two to thirty-six soft rays.
The blackear wrasse (Halichoeres poeyi) is a species of wrasse, a type of fish in the family Labridae, from the warmer waters of the western Atlantic Ocean. The blackear wrasse has a relatively long, thin body, a large eye, and a pointed snout with a terminal mouth which has protruding canine-like teeth.
Hemiramphidae is a family of fishes that are commonly called halfbeaks, spipe fish or spipefish. They are a geographically widespread and numerically abundant family of epipelagic fish inhabiting warm waters around the world. The halfbeaks are named for their distinctive jaws, in which the lower jaws are significantly longer than the upper jaws.
Hypoplectrus unicolor, the butter hamlet or yellowtail hamlet, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the groupers and anthias. It occurs in the western central Atlantic Ocean and occasionally makes its way into the aquarium trade.
Damselfishes are those within the subfamilies Abudefdufinae, Chrominae, Lepidozyginae, Pomacentrinae, and Stegastenae within the family Pomacentridae. Most species within this group are relatively small, with the larges species being about 30cm (12 in) in length. Most damselfish species exist only in marine environments, but a few inhabit brackish or fresh water. These fish are found globally in tropical, subtropical, and temperate waters
Sergeant Majors are found in the Atlantic Ocean. Populations in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean are found from the north eastern coast of the United States south to the Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, islands around the Caribbean Sea, the eastern coast of Central and South America all the way to Uruguay. In the eastern Atlantic Ocean, they are found from Portugal, Azores, the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, and western Africa.
The Carangidae are a family of ray-finned fish which includes the jacks, pompanos, jack mackerels, runners, and scads. It is the largest of the six families included within the order Carangiformes. Some authorities classify it as the only family within that order but molecular and anatomical studies indicate that there is a close relationship between this family and the five former Perciform families which make up the Carangiformes.
Scarus psittacus, the common parrotfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a parrotfish, in the family Scaridae. Other common names for this species include the palenose parrotfish, Batavian parrotfish and the rosy-cheek parrotfish. It has a wide distribution in the Indo-Pacific region where it is associated with coral reefs. This species is utilised as food. It is the type species of the genus Scarus. Scarus psittacus attains a standard length of 30 centimetres (12 in).
The stoplight parrotfish is a species of parrotfish inhabiting coral reefs in Florida, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Bermuda and as far south as Brazil. Like most of its relatives, it is able to change sex. Its typical length is between 1 and 1.5 ft, but it can reach up to 2 ft
Parrotfishes are most known for their beak jaws that are fused together with their teeth. Their distinct teeth allow them to crush and grind food. The pharyngeal jaw is the second set of teeth located in the throat. The color of the princess parrotfish (Scarus taeniopterus) depends on their gender. Males have a blue body with yellow shading across whereas females are white with shades of orange and brown. Scarus taeniopterus have cycloid scales that are smooth edged
Spiny lobsters, also known as langustas, langouste, or rock lobsters, are a family (Palinuridae) of about 60 species of achelate crustaceans, in the Decapoda Reptantia. Spiny lobsters are also, especially in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, and The Bahamas, called crayfish, sea crayfish, or crawfish ("kreef" in South Africa), terms which elsewhere are reserved for freshwater crayfish. Spiny lobsters can be easily distinguished from true lobsters by their very long, thick, spiny antennae, by the lack of chelae (claws) on the first four pairs of walking legs, although the females of most species have a small claw on the fifth pair, and by a particularly specialized larval phase called phyllosoma.
Octopuses (pl. octopuses/octopi, see below for variants) are soft-bodied, eight-limbed molluscs of the order Octopoda. The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, and nautiloids. Like other cephalopods, an octopus is bilaterally symmetric with two eyes and a beaked mouth at the center point of the eight limbs. The soft body can radically alter its shape, enabling octopuses to squeeze through small gaps. They trail their eight appendages behind them as they swim. The siphon is used both for respiration and for locomotion, by expelling a jet of water. Octopuses have a complex nervous system and excellent sight, and are among the most intelligent and behaviourally diverse of all invertebrates.
The Spanish hogfish, Bodianus rufus, is a species of wrasse native to the western Atlantic Ocean, where it can be found from North Carolina and Bermuda through the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico to southern Brazil. It inhabits coral or rock reefs at depths of 1 to 70 m (3.3 to 229.7 ft). While the adults feed on such prey as molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms (brittle stars and sea urchins), the juveniles act as cleaner fishes. This species can reach a length of 40 cm (16 in), though most do not exceed 28 cm (11 in).
The two species of tarpons are Megalops atlanticus (Atlantic tarpon) and the Megalops cyprinoides (Indo-Pacific tarpon). M. atlanticus is found on the western Atlantic coast from Virginia to Brazil, throughout the Caribbean and the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The habitats of tarpons vary greatly with their developmental stages. Stage-one larvae are usually found in clear, warm, oceanic waters, relatively close to the surface. Stage-two and -three larvae are found in salt marshes, tidal pools, creeks, and rivers.
Flying fish or flying cod. About 64 species are grouped in seven to nine genera. While they cannot fly in the same way a bird does, flying fish can make powerful, self-propelled leaps out of the water where their long wing-like fins enable gliding for considerable distances above the water's surface. The main reason for this behavior is thought to be to escape from underwater predators, which include swordfish, mackerel, tuna, and marlin, among others, though their periods of flight expose them to attack by avian predators such as frigate birds..
