Gulf butterfish facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Gulf butterfish |
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The Gulf butterfish (Peprilus burti) is a type of fish. It belongs to the Stromateidae family. You can find it in the Gulf of Mexico. It also lives off the eastern coast of the United States.
Contents
What the Gulf Butterfish Looks Like
The Gulf butterfish has an oval body. It is also very flat from side to side. Its body is less than 2.5 times as long as it is deep.
Its eye is small. The snout (nose) is short and blunt. Its lower jaw sticks out a bit more than its upper jaw. The mouth is small. It has tiny teeth in one row.
This fish has long fins on its back (dorsal fin) and belly (anal fin). These fins have three small, weak spines before them. Its tail is deeply forked, like a "V". The fins near its head (pectoral fins) are long and pointed. It does not have pelvic fins.
The Gulf butterfish has a line of 17 to 25 small pores along the front half of its body. This line is under the dorsal fin. Its side line (lateral line) is high up. It follows the curve of its back. The fish has small scales, even on its cheeks. Its body is pale blue on top. It is silvery underneath.
What the Gulf Butterfish Eats
Adult Gulf butterfish eat different things. They feed on jellyfish, small fish, and tiny ocean creatures called crustaceans. They also eat worms.
Young Gulf butterfish have a slightly different diet. They mostly eat plankton. Plankton are tiny plants and animals that float in the water. They also eat jellyfish.
Where the Gulf Butterfish Lives
Gulf butterfish often swim together in large, loose groups. They live over sandy or muddy bottoms on the continental shelf. This is the part of the ocean floor that slopes gently away from the land.
You can find them in waters from 2 to 275 meters deep. However, they are most common between 155 and 225 meters deep. During the day, they stay close to the ocean bottom. At night, they swim up into the water. Young butterfish often hide under floating plants or near jellyfish.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Gulf butterfish grow up quickly. They become adults and can have babies within one year. These fish usually do not live longer than two years.
They lay their eggs twice a year. This happens in specific times, a little bit offshore.
Where the Gulf Butterfish is Found
The Gulf butterfish lives in the Western Atlantic Ocean. This includes the entire Gulf of Mexico. You can find them from the Tampa area in Florida, USA, all the way to Yucatan in Mexico.
They also live along the eastern coast of the United States. Their range goes from Virginia down to northeastern Florida.
Why the Gulf Butterfish is Important to People
The Gulf butterfish is a popular food fish. Many people enjoy eating it. It is sold fresh or frozen. Fishermen mainly catch them using large nets called otter trawls.
Etymology
The name Peprilus comes from a Greek word. This word, "peprilos," or "paprax," was used for a certain type of fish from a place called Thrace.
