|
Name: |
Grey Mullet (Mugil cephalus) |
Family: |
Mugilidae (Mullets) |
Order: |
Perciformes (perch-likes) |
Class: |
Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) |
Alternative Name: |
Flathead mullet |
Max size: |
120 cm SL (male/unsexed; Ref. 7399); max. published weight: 8,000 g (Ref. 5258); max. reported age: 16 years |
Environment: |
Benthopelagic; catadromous (Ref. 51243); freshwater; brackish; marine; depth range 0 - 120 m |
Climate: |
Subtropical; 8 - 24°C; 42°N - 42°S |
Importance: |
Fisheries: highly commercial; Aquaculture: commercial; Gamefish: yes; Aquarium: commercial; Bait: occasionally |
Resilience: |
Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.09-0.15; tm=2-3; tmax=16; Fec=1.6 million) |
Distribution: |
Cosmopolitan in coastal waters of the tropical and subtropical zones of all seas. Eastern Pacific: California, USA to Chile (Ref. 2850). Western Atlantic: Nova Scotia, Canada to Brazil (Ref. 7251); Cape Cod to southern Gulf of Mexico (Ref. 26938); absent in the Bahamas and most of West Indies and Caribbean (Ref. 7251, 9761). Eastern Atlantic: Bay of Biscay to South Africa, including the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea (Ref. 7399). Reported in Sea of Okhotsk (Ref. 50550). |
Diagnosis: |
Dorsal spines (total): 5; Dorsal soft rays (total): 7-9; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 8-9. Color olive-green dorsally, sides silvery shading to white ventrally. Lips thin. Pectoral fins short (not reaching the first dorsal fin). |