FANTAIL MULLET – Mugil gyrans
Family Mugilidae, MULLETS
Description: color olive green with blue tints on back, shading to silvery sides, white below; anal and pelvic fins yellowish; dark blotch at base of pectoral fin; inverted V-shaped mouth; insertion of second dorsal over that of the anal fin.
Similar fish: striped mullet, M. cephalus; white mullet, M. curmea (note difference in shape of fins and opercular margins, see inset).
Where found: INSHORE, occurring along beaches in the fall.
Size: small mullet, less than 1 pound.
Remarks: spawns in NEARSHORE or possibly INSHORE waters during spring and summer; juveniles occur INSHORE; feeds on algae, small crustaceans, and detritus.
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