414 Sargassum Fish 



Size: Reaches a length of 4 feet and a weight of over 50 

 pounds. A fish slightly over 3 feet long weighed 32 pounds. 

 General Information: The American Goosefish is found 

 from the tide mark down to depths of more than 2,000 feet. 

 It is a bottom species. Spawning takes place in spring and 

 early summer. The eggs are laid in a ribbon of mucous to 

 form a broad, jelly-like sheet containing a single layer of 

 eggs. These sheets or veils of eggs may be from 25 to 35 

 feet long and 2 to 3 feet wide and float near the surface of 

 the water. Veils of eggs have been estimated to contain 

 over 1,250,000 eggs. The American Goosefish is a vora- 

 cious feeder. The flap of skin at the end of the first dorsal 

 spine is used as a bait to attract small fish. The Goosefish 

 remains quietly resting on the bottom waving the flap until 

 a small fish comes close, at which time it darts rapidly 

 forward with open mouth and engulfs the prey. Larger 

 fish, sea birds, and a wide variety of invertebrates are also 

 eaten. 



Economic Importance: A good food fish only relatively 

 recently marketed in limited quantities. This species is 

 sometimes caught by the angler fishing for other fishes. 



Sargassum Fish 

 His trio pic t us (Cuvier and Valenciennes) 



The Sargassum Fish is a tropical and subtropical species 

 drifting north with the Gulf Stream and occasionally 

 found in the region from Cape Hatteras to Cape Cod, 

 usually in the drifting seaweed offshore. This species 

 reaches a length of about 6 inches. 



