Yellow fin mojarra (Gerres cinereus)

Scientific name: Gerres cinereus Walbaum, 1792

Yellow fin mojarra (Gerres cinereus)

The Yellow fin mojarra (Gerres cinereus) is a freshwater fish of the family Gerreidae.

Biology

Inhabits shallow coastal waters in open sandy and surf areas, seagrass beds, near reefs, and mangrove channels. Enters brackish water, sometimes even fresh water. May occur in small aggregations. Feeds on benthic invertebrates such as worms, clams, crustaceans; also feeds on insects. Often seen feeding in sand patches among reefs by thrusting its mouth into the sediment and expelling sand from the gill openings. Easily approached. Marketed fresh but not highly esteemed; also processed into fishmeal.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Gerres cinereus
Family
Gerreidae (Mojarras)
Order
Perciformes (Perch-like fish)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
41.0
Common length
30.0
Depth range
1–15 m (3–49 ft)
Environment
Marine; freshwater; brackish; reef-associated; amphidromous; depth range 1 - 15 m
Climate
Subtropical
Distribution
Western Atlantic: Bermuda and Florida, USA; Bahamas, northern Gulf of Mexico, around Caribbean, including Antilles and south American coast to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; including northern Gulf of Mexico and the entire Caribbean Sea. Eastern Pacific: Mexico to Peru, including the Galapagos Islands.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Least Concern (LC)
Threat to humans
Reports of ciguatera poisoning
Uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; bait: occasionally
Resilience
Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.60; tm=1.5)

Sources

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

Last updated