Southern sennet
Encyclopedia
The Southern sennet, Sphyraena picudilla, is an ocean
-going species
of game fish in the Barracuda
family
, or Sphyraenidae. It was described by the Cuban
zoologist Felipe Poey
. The description was part of a two-volume
work, which Poey published in 1860, entitled Historia Natural de la Isla de Cuba or "Natural History of the Island of Cuba". Southern sennet are sometimes used as a food fish, and marketed either fresh or frozen. Although they are generally harmless, Southern sennet have been linked to ciguatera
poisoning.
-like heads, and large jaws. The lower jaw
protrudes slightly from the upper jaw, both of which contain fang
-like teeth. They have two dorsal fin
s, which are widely separated on their backs. The anterior dorsal fin usually possesses spine
s while the posterior only has rays. Southern sennet have 6 spines, and 9 rays on their dorsal fins. they have only 2 spines and 9 rays on their anal fins. The longest recorded Southern sennet was 2 feet long; the greatest recorded weight was 2 lbs 8 oz.
from Bermuda
, Florida
, and the Bahamas south to Uruguay
. They are found in tropical
climate
s from 32°N to 38°S. Southern sennet live in costal waters near reef
s, although they are more common over muddy bottoms, at depths from 1–65 m, where they often occur in large schools
near the surface. Juveniles are commonly found over beds of seagrass
.
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
-going species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of game fish in the Barracuda
Barracuda
The barracuda is a ray-finned fish known for its large size and fearsome appearance. Its body is long, fairly compressed, and covered with small, smooth scales. Some species could reach up to 1.8m in length and 30 cm in width...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
, or Sphyraenidae. It was described by the Cuban
Cubans
Cubans or Cuban people are the inhabitants or citizens of Cuba. Cuba is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
zoologist Felipe Poey
Felipe Poey
-Biography:Poey was born in Havana, the son of French and Spanish parents. He spent several years of his life in Pau then studied law in Madrid. He became a lawyer in Spain but was forced to leave due to his liberal ideas, returning to Cuba in 1823. He began to concentrate on the study of the...
. The description was part of a two-volume
Volume (publishing)
A volume is a single book that is part of a collection; also a bibliographic identifier for a sequence of periodicals....
work, which Poey published in 1860, entitled Historia Natural de la Isla de Cuba or "Natural History of the Island of Cuba". Southern sennet are sometimes used as a food fish, and marketed either fresh or frozen. Although they are generally harmless, Southern sennet have been linked to ciguatera
Ciguatera
Ciguatera is a foodborne illness caused by eating certain reef fishes whose flesh is contaminated with toxins originally produced by dinoflagellates such as Gambierdiscus toxicus which lives in tropical and subtropical waters. These dinoflagellates adhere to coral, algae and seaweed, where they are...
poisoning.
Description
Southern sennet, like other members of the Sphyraenidae family, possess elongated bodies, pikeEsox
Esox is a genus of freshwater fish, the only living genus in the family Esocidae — the esocids which were endemic to North America, Europe and Eurasia during the Paleogene through present.The type species is E. lucius, the northern pike...
-like heads, and large jaws. The lower jaw
Mandible
The mandible pronunciation or inferior maxillary bone forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place...
protrudes slightly from the upper jaw, both of which contain fang
Fang
Fang is a mammal's canine tooth.Fang may also refer to:* A snake's poison-injecting tooth: see snake venom* Fang people, in Central Africa* Fang language, spoken by Fang people...
-like teeth. They have two dorsal fin
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...
s, which are widely separated on their backs. The anterior dorsal fin usually possesses spine
Spine (zoology)
A spine is a hard, thorny or needle-like structure which occurs on various animals. Animals such as porcupines and sea urchins grow spines as a self-defense mechanism. Spines are often formed of keratin...
s while the posterior only has rays. Southern sennet have 6 spines, and 9 rays on their dorsal fins. they have only 2 spines and 9 rays on their anal fins. The longest recorded Southern sennet was 2 feet long; the greatest recorded weight was 2 lbs 8 oz.
Distribution and habitat
Southern sennet are known only from the western Atlantic oceanAtlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
from Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, and the Bahamas south to Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. They are found in tropical
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
climate
Climate
Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...
s from 32°N to 38°S. Southern sennet live in costal waters near reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
s, although they are more common over muddy bottoms, at depths from 1–65 m, where they often occur in large schools
Shoaling and schooling
In biology, any group of fish that stay together for social reasons are said to be shoaling , and if, in addition, the group is swimming in the same direction in a coordinated manner, they are said to be schooling . In common usage, the terms are sometimes used rather loosely...
near the surface. Juveniles are commonly found over beds of seagrass
Seagrass
Seagrasses are flowering plants from one of four plant families , all in the order Alismatales , which grow in marine, fully saline environments.-Ecology:...
.