Fish - Page 4

Photo - click to enlarge	Scientific name	Common name	Comments
	Hyporhamphus spp.	Halfbeak	Two species of halfbeak are common in the Gulf as well as another look-alike, the ballyhoo. Snorkelers often miss seeing them because they hug the top layer of the water. They can skim across the surface for hundred of yards, much like flying fish.
	Lactophrys quadricornis	Scrawled Cowfish	A member of the box fishes. Can grow to 19 inches. Note the large forward spine and the shorter one just above the pelvic fin.
	Lagodon rhomboides	Pinfish Pinfish Mature	The second-most abundant fish in Florida estuaries. A member of the porgy family, it derives its common name from its sharp dorsal spines. Though large individuals (> 1 pound) are occasionally eaten, they are most often used as bait for larger targets such as grouper and tarpon. Spawning takes place offshore in winter, and the new youngsters move in to shallow seagrass beds, where they grow rapidly until they’re ready to join the adult population that fall. At this size one of its major enemies is the bottle-nosed dolphin.
	Leiostomus xanthurus	Spot	A nearshore and inshore bottom feeder, often traveling in groups as adults. The young feed on plankton, switching to life found in mud bottoms as they grow. Very abundant along the Gulf coast, huge numbers of young enter the estuaries in late winter.
	Lucania parva	Rainwater killifish	A small (< 2 inches), plain-looking killifish. One of the most abundant species in west Florida estuaries; found in huge numbers in quiet brackish backwaters, often in sea grass.
		Rainwater killifish	Adult stage
	Lutjanus griseus	Gray snapper	Popular with hook and line fishermen in southwest Florida, who sometimes mistakenly identify it as red snapper. Juveniles live mostly in seagrass beds and mangroves; adults are most often found around structure such as rocks, bridges, jetties, and wrecks. Voracious predators on crustaceans and fish.
	Membras martinica	Rough silverside	A member of a widespread family of small schooling fish. Most abundant in low-salinity habitats, including tidal rivers, in our area. These and other silversides lay adhesive eggs which stick to submerged vegetation, rocks, etc.