Largespot lizardfish facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Largespot lizardfish
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Aulopiformes
Family:	Synodontidae
Genus:	Synodus
Species:	S. macrostigmus
Binomial name
Synodus macrostigmus Frable, Luther & C. C. Baldwin, 2013
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The largespot lizardfish (Synodus macrostigmus) is a type of fish that lives in the ocean. It belongs to the Synodontidae family, also known as lizardfishes. These fish are a kind of ray-finned fish, which means their fins are supported by bony rays. You can find this fish in the warm parts of the western Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.

What Does the Largespot Lizardfish Look Like?

The largespot lizardfish has a long, tube-shaped body. It can grow to about 21 centimeters (8.3 inches) long. Its top fin, called the dorsal fin, has eleven or twelve soft rays. The fin on its underside, the anal fin, has eleven soft rays.

The fish's head and back are usually grey or greenish-brown. Its belly is a pale color. It has six to eight dark brown spots along its sides. These spots are connected by darker bands over its back. There are also thin orange-yellow stripes between these bands. These stripes break into orange-yellow blobs on its belly.

A big, dark brown patch is found near its shoulder area. This special mark is why it is called the "largespot" lizardfish. It also has other dark spots on its head and tail fin.

Where Does the Largespot Lizardfish Live?

The largespot lizardfish lives in the warm western Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. However, it does not seem to live in the Caribbean Sea. In the Atlantic, its home stretches from Bald Head Island, North Carolina to Jacksonville, Florida. In the Gulf of Mexico, it lives from the Florida Keys to Alabama. It is also found on the northern and western sides of the Yucatán Peninsula. Scientists think it might live in even more places in the Gulf of Mexico than we know right now.

This fish is a benthic animal. This means it lives on or near the bottom of the ocean. It prefers to live over the continental shelf. This is the shallow part of the ocean floor that extends from a continent. It can be found at depths between 28 and 194 meters (92 to 636 feet).

Is the Largespot Lizardfish Endangered?

The largespot lizardfish is not caught for food or other commercial uses. However, it sometimes gets caught by accident. This happens when fishing boats are trawling for shrimps on the continental shelf. This accidental catch is called bycatch. Scientists do not believe that this bycatch is harming the fish's overall population.

The fish lives in a very wide area. Because of this, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has looked at its conservation status. They have decided that the largespot lizardfish is a "least concern" species. This means it is not currently at risk of becoming endangered.