The bonefish (''Albula vulpes'') is the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specime ...

of the bonefish family (Albulidae), the only family in order Albuliformes.

History

Bonefish were once believed to be a single species with a global distribution, however 9 different species have since been identified. There are three identified species in the Atlantic and six in the Pacific. ''Albula vulpes'' is the largest and most widespread of the Atlantic species.

Description

The bonefish weighs up to and measures up to long. The color of bonefish can range from very silver sides and slight darker backs to olive green backs that blend to the silver side. Slight shading on the scales often leads to very soft subtle lines that run the flank of the fish from the gills to the tail. The bases of the

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

s are sometimes yellow. Bonefish can live up to 20 years and reach sexual maturity at 2–3 years of age (when they're over 17 inches (43.18 cm) long). Larvae drift for an average of 53 days. Juveniles often live over open sandy bottoms.

Behavior

An amphidromous species, it lives in inshore tropical waters and moves onto shallow mudflats or sand flats to feed with the incoming

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables ...

. Adults and juveniles may shoal together, and mature adults may be found singly or in pairs. The bonefish feeds on benthic

worm Worms are many different distantly related bilateral animals that typically have a long cylindrical tube-like body, no limbs, and no eyes (though not always). Worms vary in size from microscopic to over in length for marine polychaete wo ...

s, fry,

crustacean Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group can ...

s, and

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...

s. Ledges, drop-offs, and clean, healthy

seagrass Seagrasses are the only flowering plants which grow in marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four families (Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and Cymodoceaceae), all in the or ...

beds yield abundant small prey such as crabs and shrimp. It may follow stingrays to catch the small animals they root from the substrate. In the

Los Roques archipelago The Los Roques Archipelago (Spanish: ''Archipiélago de Los Roques'') is a federal dependency of Venezuela consisting of approximately 350 islands, cays, and islets in a total area of 40.61 square kilometers. The archipelago is located dir ...

bonefish primarily hunt glass minnows, however this behavior is atypical.

Fishing and cuisine

Bonefish are considered one of the premier fly and light tackle game fish. Fishing for bonefish, called bonefishing, is a popular sport in the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

, Puerto Rico, southern

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Cargados Carajos It is highly likely that the name Saint Brandon was derived from the French sailors and corsairs that sailed to and from Britanny, after a town called Saint-Brandan. It has since been Anglicised to Saint Brandon and is also known as the Cargad ...

. Since bonefish live in shallow inshore water, fishing may be done by wading or from a shallow-draft boat. Bonefishing is mostly done for the sport, so the fish are released, but they may also be eaten in less developed areas. A typical Bahamian recipe is a split fish seasoned with

pepper sauce Sauce poivrade, sometimes called sauce au poivre, is a peppery sauce in French cuisine. It is made of a cooked mirepoix thickened with flour and moistened with wine and a little vinegar, then heavily seasoned with black pepper. More traditional ...

and salt, then baked.Darwin Porter, Danforth Prince, ''Frommer's Bahamas'', 20th edition, 2012, , p. 27. Bonefish are notoriously wary and great skill must be taken both in approach and presentation when fishing for them. English speaking fishermen often refer to them as “grey ghosts."

References

External links