Spottail pinfish facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Spottail pinfish |
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| A spottail pinfish after caught by an angler. | |
| Scientific classification | |
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Sparidae
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| Genus: |
Diplodus
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| Species: |
D. holbrookii
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| Binomial name | |
| Diplodus holbrookii (Bean, 1878)
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The spottail pinfish (Diplodus holbrookii) is a type of fish that lives in the ocean. It belongs to the family called Sparidae. People sometimes call it the Spottail seabream. Like other fish in its family, the Spottail pinfish can be eaten. Some people think it's a good panfish to catch and cook.
Contents
Who Named the Spottail Pinfish?
The Spottail pinfish was first described in 1878. This was done by a scientist named Tarleton Hoffman Bean. He was an ichthyologist, which means he studied fish. Bean mainly worked along the coast of Connecticut.
He first put this fish in the genus Sargus. Later, it was moved to the genus Diplodus. Bean named the Spottail pinfish after John Edwards Holbrook. Holbrook was a zoologist who had passed away seven years earlier.
What Does the Spottail Pinfish Look Like?
Spottail pinfish are mostly gray. They have a big, black spot on the back part of their tail area. This spot is on the distal end of their caudal peduncle.
Other fish in the same genus, like Diplodus annularis and Diplodus sargus, look similar. However, D. sargus has several dark vertical stripes. The Spottail pinfish does not have these stripes.
Where Do Spottail Pinfish Live?
Spottail pinfish only live in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean. You can find them from Chesapeake Bay down to southern Florida. They are also found in the northern Gulf of Mexico.
However, you won't find them in the West Indies. There are only a few unconfirmed reports of them being seen near Cuba.
These fish like shallow waters near the coast. They usually live in water that is no deeper than 28 meters (about 92 feet). They can be found in bays and harbors. They rarely go into areas where the water is a mix of fresh and salt water.
Spottail pinfish prefer flat areas with lots of plants. They like places with beds of sea grass. Here, they eat both plants, like Thalassia, and small invertebrates (animals without backbones).
How Do Spottail Pinfish Behave?
Spottail pinfish often school together in small groups. But they usually mix with many other kinds of fish. Some of these fish include the Porkfish, Gray snapper, Bluestriped grunt, Sailor's grunt, and the Bucktooth parrotfish.
Fishing for Spottail Pinfish
Spottail pinfish will easily bite on different kinds of bait. They like shrimp (both live and fake), squid, and clams. Sometimes, anglers trying to catch bigger fish find them to be a bit of a nuisance.
See also
In Spanish: Diplodus holbrookii para niños
