Stellate codlet (Bregmaceros houdei)

Scientific name: Bregmaceros houdei Saksena & Richards, 1986

The Stellate codlet (Bregmaceros houdei) is a marine fish of the family Bregmacerotidae. Native range: Western Atlantic, eastern Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea west of the Lesser Antilles.

Biology

Dorsal soft rays (total): 40-44; Anal soft rays: 41 - 46; Vertebrae: 47 - 50. Body color limited to dark melanophores located on anterior half of body. Dorsal and anal fins are relatively short and symmetrical. Snout moderately acute. Terminal mouth with jaws slightly oblique and extends beyond anterior margin of pupil. Head length 21.3-25.5%; predorsal length 25.6-45.2%; body depth 13-16% of SL. Eye diameter 0.7-0.9 times the snout length and 0.9-1.3 times interorbital width. Head length 3.5-5.3 times interorbital width. Caudal fin has31-33 rays. Myomeres 44-47. Smallest larvae (1.7 - 3.5 mm SL) have large, stellate chromatophores at angle of jaw, scattered over hindbrain and at the base of 1st dorsal fin. Large larvae (5-10 mm SL) have additional chromatophores on midbrain, hindbrain, and on ventral surface of anterior half of visceral mass. Juvenile specimens have chromatophores scattered over anterior third of the body.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Bregmaceros houdei
Family
Bregmacerotidae (Codlets)
Order
Gadiformes (Cods)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
1.6
Environment
Marine; pelagic-neritic
Climate
Tropical
Distribution
Western Atlantic: eastern Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea west of the Lesser Antilles.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

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