(DRAFT) - Taxonomy
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
TAXONOMY
NAME - butterfish
OTHER COMMON NAMES - dollarfish, shiner, harvestfish, skipjack, sheepshead and Fr.: stromatee a fossettes
ELEMENT CODE -
CATEGORY - Fish
PHYLUM AND SUBPHYLUM - Vertebrae,
CLASS AND SUBCLASS - Elasmobranchiomorphi,
ORDER AND SUBORDER - Perciformes,
FAMILY AND SUBFAMILY - Centrarchidae,
GENUS AND SUBGENUS - Peprilus,
SPECIES AND SSP - triacanthus,
SCIENTIFIC NAME - Peprilus triacanthus
AUTHORITY - Peck
TAXONOMY REFERENCES - 258 and 1717
COMMENTS ON TAXONOMY -
It was placed in the species of the genus Peprilus based primarily on the
presence of the characteristic row of large pores below the dorsal fin.
Poronotus triacanthus is a synonym.*258*
Taxonomy - 1 (DRAFT) - Status
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
STATUS
REFERENCES FOR STATUS - 258
COMMENTS ON STATUS -
There is no commercial fishery for butterfish in Canadian Atlantic waters.
When caught incidentally, it is processed for fish meal and pet food.
Researchers reported a catch of 6.8 t in two traps off Halifax Harbour in
1938 but this occurrence was unusual. Researchers calculated that the
annual butterfish catch between Nova Scotia and Cape Hatteras from 1968 to
1976 ranged, in millions of fish, from a low of 102.77 in 1968 to a high of
460.05 in 1973. Major contributions were made by age 1 and age 2 fish.
Catches of about 10 t from NAFO areas in 1982 were recorded. The fishery is
operated mainly by foreign fleets. The species is captured with a variety
of gear including trawls, seines, pound nets, trap nets, and gill nets. It
is a delicious pan fish.*258*
Status - 1 (DRAFT) - Distribution
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
DISTRIBUTION
Distribution - 1 HABITAT ASSOCIATIONS
Habitat Associations - 1 (DRAFT) - Food Habits
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
FOOD HABITS
TROPHIC LEVEL -
CARNIVORE
REFERENCES FOR TROPHIC LEVEL - 258
LIFESTAGE FOOD FOOD PART
General Crustaceans Not Specified
General Cnidaria Not Specified
General Comb-jellies Not Specified
General Polychaetes Not Specified
REFERENCES FOR GENERAL FOOD - 258
COMMENTS ON FOOD -
A variety of food organisms are eaten, including small fishes, squid,
amphipods, shrimp, and marine worms. The ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi and
the parasite Edwardsia leidyi, an external parasite of this ctenophore, were
consumed by butterfish from Narragansett Bay, RI. Jellyfish remains were
found in stomachs of small specimens, 24-41 mm SL.*258*
Food Habits - 1 (DRAFT) - Environment Associations
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSOCIATIONS
Environment Associations - 1 (DRAFT) - Life History
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
LIFE HISTORY
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
Body ovate; shallow to moderatley deep, strongly compressed. Head short,
blunt; mouth small, terminal, lower jaw projecting; teeth weak, a single
series in each jaw; eye large. Gill rakers 22-25. Branchiostegals 6.
Fins: dorsal of 2-4 (usually 3) small spines, 40-48 soft rays; caudal long,
deeply forked; anal of 2 or 3 (usally 3) small spines, cycloid, deciduous,
covering body, on dorsal, caudal, and anal fins. Lateral line complete.
Vertebrae 30-33. Size to about 28 cm SL, usually not over 29.9 cm; weight
of 450 g. Color bluish or greenish silver above, often mottled with large,
dark spots; silvery below.*258*
REPRODUCTION:
Little is known of the time of spawning or reproduction in the Canadian
Atlantic area. Spawning fish were caught in St May Bay, Bay of Fundy, in
July but neither fry nor fish smaller than 71 mm have been caught and it is
not known if breeding is successful in these waters. Researchers noted
spawning in the Gulf of Maine was from June to August. The height of
activity occurred in July a few kilometers offshore. Southward spawning
took place earlier. The eggs, 0.68-0.82 mm in diameter, have one
(occasionally more) small oil globule and are spherical and transparent.
Hatching takes place in 2-3 d at about 18.3 degrees C.*258*
LIMITING FACTORS:
Predation and competition. Butterfish are reported as food of commercially
important fishes including haddock, silver hake, bluefish, and weakfish.
Researchers reported butterfish were found in stomach contents of swordfish,
Xiphias gladius.
Parasites and disease. A monogenean species, Microcotyle poronoti, was
reported on gills of the butterfish in Atlantic waters.*258*
POPULATION ATTRIBUTES:
Growth. Larvae were 1.68-1.75 mm TL on hatching. Growth was rapid during
the 24-h period following hatching, larvae reaching an average length of
2.27 mm; at 48 h they were 2.49 mm long; at 6 d (144 h) they averaged 2.57
mm. Growth is fastest during the first year. Rate of growth in the eastern
United States area was 7.6-12.7 cm in the first year; at 2 yr at a length of
14-18 cm SL. Maximum size is reported to be 28 cm SL, 30 cm FL; usual size
is 15-20 cm. One caught in the southern Gulf of St Lawrence in 1937 was
26.4 cm in lenth. Otoliths are used in age determination.*258*
LIFE HISTORY CODES -
Breeding/Spawning Season: June
Breeding/Spawning Season: July
Breeding/Spawning Season: August
REFERENCES FOR LIFE HISTORY- 258
Life History - 1 (DRAFT) - Management Practices
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
Management Practices - 1 (DRAFT) - References
Species butterfish
Species Id M010530
Date 27 AUG 96
References
References - 1