Porichthys plectrodon, Atlantic midshipman : fisheries

Porichthys plectrodon Jordan & Gilbert, 1882

Atlantic midshipman
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Porichthys plectrodon   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Porichthys plectrodon (Atlantic midshipman)
Porichthys plectrodon
Picture by NOAA\NMFS\Mississippi Laboratory

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Batrachoidiformes (Toadfishes) > Batrachoididae (Toadfishes) > Porichthyinae
Etymology: Porichthys: Greek, poros = porous + Greek, ichthys = fish (Ref. 45335).
More on authors: Jordan & Gilbert.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; demersal; depth range 1 - 100 m (Ref. 5217). Tropical; 38°N - 7°S, 98°W - 34°W

Distribution Territories | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Western Atlantic: Virginia, USA and northern Gulf of Mexico to at least northern South America.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 29.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5217); common length : 20.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5217); max. published weight: 10.70 g (Ref. 118626)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 2; Dorsal soft rays (total): 35 - 36; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 32 - 33. Branchiostegal photophore series restricted mid-ventral, with deep U-shaped apex anteriorly; margin of soft dorsal fin membranes with black blotches, black margin intermittent (Ref. 13608).
Body shape (shape guide): elongated.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Inhabits mud or sand bottoms (Ref. 5217). Most common on rather shallow offshore banks, such as commercial shrimp grounds; less common inshore.

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Collette, Bruce B. | Collaborators

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. 130435: Version 2025-2 (Global))

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 21 August 2012

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items (preys)
Diet composition
Food consumption
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Population dynamics
Growth parameters
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Maturity/Gills rel.
Fecundity
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Eggs
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Larvae
Larval dynamics
Distribution
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Anatomy
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Physiology
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Nutrients
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Genetics
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Stamps, coins, misc.
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References

Tools

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Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | OceanAdapt | OneZoom | Open Tree of Life | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | TreeBase | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoobank | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index
(Ref. 82804) 		PD50 = 0.5001 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight a=0.00589 (0.00367 - 0.00946), b=3.07 (2.93 - 3.21), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & Genus-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level
(Ref. 69278) 		4.5   ±0.0 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience
(Ref. 120179) 		Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability
(Ref. 59153) 		Low to moderate vulnerability (35 of 100). 🛈
Price category
(Ref. 80766) 		Unknown.
Nutrients
(Ref. 124155) 		Calcium = 155 [83, 295] mg/100g; Iron = 1.13 [0.65, 1.94] mg/100g; Protein = 17.3 [16.2, 18.4] %; Omega3 = 0.207 [0.106, 0.406] g/100g; Selenium = 53.1 [25.2, 128.7] μg/100g; VitaminA = 52.6 [17.5, 159.9] μg/100g; Zinc = 1 [1, 1] mg/100g (wet weight);