Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) >
Perciformes (Perch-likes) >
Mullidae (Goatfishes)
Etymology: Mullus: Latin, mullus = soft (Ref. 45335).
Environment / Climate / Range
Ecology
Marine; demersal; depth range 9 - 91 m (Ref. 7251), usually 10 - 60 m (Ref. 5217). Subtropical, preferred ?; 46°N - 6°N, 98°W - 56°W
Western Atlantic: Nova Scotia, Canada and Bermuda to Guyana. Rare north of Florida, USA; absent from Bahamas.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 25.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 7251); 27.0 cm TL (female); common length : 16.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3792); max. published weight: 0.00 g
Dorsal
spines
(total): 9;
Dorsal
soft rays
(total): 8;
Anal
spines: 2;
Anal
soft rays: 6. Red to reddish dorsally, grading to whitish ventrally, with 2 to 5 longitudinal yellow stripes that are generally not sharply defined. First dorsal fin with 2 orange to red stripes, the outer part of fin sometimes blackish. Second dorsal fin with 4 or 5 narrow reddish stripes. Caudal fin reddish. Snout short, the dorsal profile steep, forming an angle of about 60º and nearly straight. Interorbital space broad and flat. Teeth very small, in a villiform band in lower jaw, none in upper jaw. No spine in opercle (Ref 52648).
Inhabits neritic waters, especially over sand or mud bottoms (Ref. 5217). Flesh considered excellent quality; marketed fresh (Ref. 3792).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986. A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p. (Ref. 7251)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)
CITES (Ref. 94142)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial
More information
Age/SizeGrowthLength-weightLength-lengthLength-frequenciesMorphometricsMorphologyLarvaeLarval dynamicsRecruitmentAbundance
ReferencesAquacultureAquaculture profileStrainsGeneticsAllele frequenciesHeritabilityDiseasesProcessingMass conversion
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Estimates of some properties based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82805): PD
50 = 0.5625 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01023 (0.00484 - 0.02165), b=3.09 (2.92 - 3.26), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic Level (Ref.
69278): 3.4 ±0.3 se; Based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
69278): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low to moderate vulnerability (27 of 100) .