Unknown Type O' Fish Tuesday

[Dee]

those are Atlantic Spadefish.

And Ravie is correct with the Pilot Fish. You also see them around whales, different rays and even ships.

 

[Rick Murchison]

At first glance I thought "pilot fish" - but then I started studying the fins, and either they're something very different or they're a brand of pilot fish that's new to me...
Rick (unsure)

 

[Dee]

Rick...Have you looked in Humann's Reef Fish ID book? 3rd Edition, pg. 87, middle photo. I just checked and I think I see the difference.

Notabob's photo shows 2 dorsal fins and dark pectoral fins, maybe even double pectoral fins??? I still think it's a Pilot but maybe it's a sub-species that far north. Plus the book I have is for the Caribbean.

 

[Rick Murchison]

Humann was the first place I looked to verify the ID - when that didn't look right I started checking other sources, and none had either the dorsal forefin (just a few very short barbs there), the "double" pectorals or the bar through the eye... but after looking at other features - I'm pretty sure I can see the scutes - I agree it just *has* to be a pilotfish of some sort - it's certainly a jack.
Rick

 

[notabob]

Cool. Fishbase confirms, they do seem to be pilotfish, Naucrates Ductor. Thanks guys!

Now the question becomes, did their presense indicate proximity of the rumored 20ft Great White that "everyone's" been seeing in the NY/NJ area...

-Roman.

 

[Epinephelus]

notabob once bubbled...
Now the question becomes, did their presense indicate proximity of the rumored 20ft Great White that "everyone's" been seeing in the NY/NJ area...

-Roman.

Of course! Pilotfish don't get that far north by themselves...
Tum tum tum tum... tum tum tum tum .. tum tum tum tum....
E.

 

[notabob]

Epinephelus once bubbled...

Of course! Pilotfish don't get that far north by themselves...
Tum tum tum tum... tum tum tum tum .. tum tum tum tum....
E.

Yeah... The other night local Fox station was drumming up a potential great white in Massachusetts waters. It's happened before, though. I think the last time they caught one was a 12ft juvie back in 96 or so...

 

[Diver0001]

Rick Murchison once bubbled...

It's a grouper - probably a Tiger Grouper, but - where was it taken?
Rick?

There are two fish commonly called the "tiger grouper"

One is the "Epinephelus fuscoguttatus"

and the other is the "Mycteroperca tigris"

This is the latter.

R..

 

[DrSteve]

I'm told this might be a crappy - but also the spots are more stripey than random. Photographed in Lake Rawlings, VA.

 

[DrSteve]

Could this be a crappy?

The anglers here thought it was a pirch of some kind.