FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 82, NO. 4 



dorsal fin 17 or 18, rarely 19 (Table 9); second 

 dorsal fin rays 15-19, usually 17 or 18 (Table 10); 

 finlets 8-10, usually 9 (Table 10); anal fin rays 16- 



20, usually 17-19 (Table 11); finlets 7-10, usually 9 

 (Table 11); pectoral fin rays 21-24, usually 22 or 

 23 (Table 12). For a sample of 90 Brazilian S. 

 brasiliensis, Bastos (1966) found the following 

 numbers of fin rays to be most common: dorsal 

 spines 18 (86.6%), rays 18 (76.6%), finlets 9 

 (75.3%); anal rays 18 (100%), finlets 9 (79.8%), 

 pectoral rays 22 (98.9%). Precaudal vertebrae 19- 



21, usually 20 (Table 6); caudal vertebrae 27-29, 

 usually 28 (Table 7); total vertebrae 47-49, usu- 

 ally 48 (Table 8). The counts of 46 or 47 reported 

 by Bastos (1966) presumably exclude the hypural 

 plate which we include in our counts. Gill rakers 

 on first arch (1-3) + (9-13)= 11-16, usually 2 + (11- 

 12)= 13-15 (Table 5). For a large sample from 

 Brazil (225 males, 275 females), Menezes (1972) 

 found a similar range, 11-17, and a "typical" count 

 of 3+1 + 11 = 15. Morphometric characters are 

 given in Table 13. 



Size. — Maximum size 125 cm FL (Costa and 

 Paiva 1969, Ceara, Brazil). Of 16,170 fish meas- 



TABLE 13. — Summary of morphometric data of Scorri- 

 beromorus brasiliensis. FL = fork length, HL = head 

 length. 



ured in Ceara from 1962 to 1966, 9 exceeded 95.0 

 cm FL, more than 60% each year from 1962 to 

 1968 were in the size range 40-65 cm (Brazilian 

 records summarized by Collette et al. 1978). Sex- 

 ual maturity is reached at age III or IV, 46 cm FL 

 in Ceara (Gesteira 1972). The shortest mature 

 male in Trinidad was 38 cm, the shortest ripe 

 female 45 cm (Sturm 1978). The length-weight 

 relationship for the Brazilian population was 

 given by Nomura (1967). Males and females grew 

 at roughly equal rates up to 4 yr of age but then 

 females grew faster on to age XIV (Ximenes 

 1983). 



Color pattern. — Sides with several rows of round 

 yellowish-bronze (in life) spots (Fig. 47) similar to 

 S. maculatus and S. sierra but without any lines 

 or streaks such as are present in S. regalis. 

 Number of yellowish-bronze spots on sides of 

 body increases with size of fish; young specimens 

 (200 mm) have about 30 spots; adults more, 45 

 spots (422 mm), 47(455), 46(470), 45(516), and 

 58(530) (Collette et al. 1978). Spots arranged in 

 three or four rows (sometimes in two rows). The 

 rows are not very well defined but it is possible to 

 recognize them. First dorsal fie black in the 

 anterior half (first seven membranes), posterior 

 half white with upper edge black. Pectoral fin 

 dusky; pelvic and anal fins white. 



There is a black and white photograph of a 

 specimen from Colombia in Dahl (1971:278) and a 

 drawing of a Venezuelan specimen in Cervigon 

 (1966:fig. 303). 



Biology. — No extensive migrations are known 

 for S. brasiliensis, and it is available to the 

 fishery in northeastern Brazil all year round. 

 There does appear to be some seasonal movement 

 around Trinidad (Sturm 1978). There is a spawn- 

 ing peak in the Gulf of Paria, Venezuela, in 

 October-April followed by a postspawning feed- 

 ing migration away from Venezuela with a period 

 of maximum abundance in Trinidad waters May- 

 September. Some spawning takes place in the 

 Gulf of Paria throughout the year with a peak 

 in October-April (Sturm 1978). Ripe fish are 

 taken on the Guyana continental shelf in Sep- 

 tember (Lowe 1962). Spawning takes place all 

 year round off northeastern Brazil with a peak in 

 the third trimester, July-September (Gesteira 

 1972). Spawning probably takes place mostly 

 offshore beyond the main fishing areas. There 

 appear to be no references to eggs or larvae of S. 

 brasiliensis. As with other species in the genus, 



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