Description: Body elongate and compressed. Small head, with a short snout, oblique mouth, and small eyes placed on the upper side of the head. Two separate dorsal fins, the first one with 5 to 7 venomous spines; the second composed of soft rays; another strong venomous spine on the opercle. Spines also present on the eye margin. Pectoral fins rounded. Caudal fin truncate. Greenish on the dorsal side, with brown, green or yellowish scales arranged in oblique rows forming lines; yellowish on the ventral side.
Global Distribution: Eastern Atlantic, from Norway to Mauritania, including Madeira and the Canary Islands; Mediterranean and Black Sea. View Map
BIOLOGICAL FEATURES
Size: Maximum length 53.0 cm (total length); common length 25.0 cm (standard length); maximum published weight 1.9 kg.
Age:
Weight length rel.: Portugal, south coast (Santos et al. 2002): a=0.0042, b=3.119, r2=0.955 (n=2767).
Portugal, west coast (Mendes et al. 2004): a=0.0014, b=3.460, r2=0.911 (n=99).
Spain, south-west coast (Torres et al. 2012): a=0.0045, b=3.075, r2=0.98 (n=141).
FishBase: Bayesian estimated length-weight: a=0.00759 (0.00586 - 0.00982), b=3.02 (2.95 - 3.09).
Growth type: Positive allometric (Santos et al. 2002; Mendes et al. 2004; Torres et al. 2012).
von Bertallanfy growth parameters:
Reproduction: Oviparous, eggs and larval stages pelagic. Spawning takes place in June and August.
Maturity:
Behavioural ecology: Chiefly nocturnal. At night they swim around freely, even pelagically.
Population structure & migrations:
ECOLOGICAL FEATURES
Depth range: FishBase: 1 - 150 m, usually 1 - 30 m.
Habitat: Demersal. On sandy, muddy or gravelly bottoms, from a few meters to about 150 m. Rest on the bottom, often buried with eyes and tip of first dorsal fin exposed.
Feeding habits: Feeds on small invertebrates and fishes.
Trophic level: FishBase: 4.2
FISHERIES
Commercial interest: Minor commercial species.
Conservation status: Global: Not evaluated.
Europe: Least concern.
Nutritional information & food safety:
Proximate composition per 100 g:
energy value 126.7 kcal (6.3% DRV)
protein 18.2 g (36.4% DRV)
fat 1.4 g (2.0% DRV)
REFERENCES
Fischer W., Bianchi G., Scott W.B., eds. (1981). FAO species identification sheets for fishery purposes. Eastern Central Atlantic; fishing areas 34, 47 (in part). Canada Funds-in-Trust. Ottawa, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, by arrangement with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, vol. 4, 316 pp.
González J., Hernández C., Marrero P., Rapp E. (2000). Peces de Canarias: GuÃa Submarina (5th edition). Francisco Lemus Editor, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canarias, Spain, 235 pp.
IUCN (2014). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org
Mendes B., Fonseca P., Campos A. (2004). Weight–length relationships for 46 fish species of the Portuguese west coast. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 20(5): 355-361.
Nieto A., Ralph G.M., Comeros-Raynal M.T., Kemp J., GarcÃa Criado M., Allen D.J., Dulvy N.K., Walls R.H.L., Russell B., Pollard D., GarcÃa S., Craig M., Collette B.B., Pollom R., Biscoito M., Labbish Chao N., Abella A., Afonso P., Ãlvarez H., Carpenter K.E., Clò S., Cook R., Costa M.J., Delgado J., Dureuil M., Ellis J.R., Farrell E.D., Fernandes P., Florin A-B., Fordham S., Fowle, S., Gil de Sola L., Gil Herrera J., Goodpaster A., Harvey M., Heessen H., Herler J., Jung A., Karmovskaya E., Keskin C., Knudsen S.W., Kobyliansky S., KovaÄić M., Lawson J.M., Lorance P., McCully Phillips S., Munroe T., Nedreaas K., Nielsen J., Papaconstantinou C., Polidoro B., Pollock C.M., Rijnsdorp A.D., Sayer C., Scott J., Serena F., Smith-Vaniz W.F., Soldo A., Stump E., Williams J.T. (2015). Europen Red List of Marine Fishes. IUCN and European Union, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 90 pp.
Santos M.N., Gaspar M.B., Vasconcelos P., Monteiro C.C. (2002). Weight–length relationships for 50 selected fish species of the Algarve coast (southern Portugal). Fisheries Research, 59(1): 289-295.
Spitz J., Mourocq E. Schoen V., Ridoux V. (2010). Proximate composition and energy content of forage species from the Bay of Biscay: high- or low-quality food? ICES Journal of Marine Science, 67(5): 909-915.
Torres M.A., Ramos F., Sobrino I. (2012). Length–weight relationships of 76 fish species from the Gulf of Cadiz (SW Spain). Fisheries Research, 127: 171-175.
