Latin name

Pagrus pagrus

Other names

Сommon seabream

Identification

Body oval, moderately deep. Head profile convex, slightly steeper in front of the eyes; 6 or 7 rows of scales on the cheeks; both jaws with large fanglike teeth in front, 4 on the upper jaw and 6 on the lower jaw, followed by smaller and blunter fanglike teeth which gradually become molars in the posterior third of the jaws; 2 outer rows of strong teeth framed in the area in front of the molars by several rows of very fine teeth; gill rake short, the lower part of the first arch 8 to 10, 6 to 8 on the upper limb.  There are 50 to 59 scales on the lateral line.

Features of fish fins

The dorsal fin has 12-13 hard and 9-11 soft rays, the anal fin has 3 hard and 7-9 soft rays.

Fish colouring

This fish is silvery pink with darker patches on the belt and behind the pectoral fins. The caudal fin is dark pink with pale tips and the rest of the fins are pale pink.

Distribution

It inhabits the subtropical and tropical waters of the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Sea of Marmara.

Habitat

These fish can be found at depths of 250 m (820 ft), although they are more commonly found between 10 and 80 m (30 and 260 ft) on continental shelves. It is a bottom dwelling species found in both rocky and soft sediment areas; juveniles often inhabit seagrass beds and occasionally enter lagoons.

Size

Maximum length 91 cm, mass 7.7 kg, normal size 30-35 s. 

Behavior

They are protogynous hermaphrodites, with most individuals starting life as females and eventually becoming males.

Food and feeding habits

Demersal fishes that feed mainly on crustaceans, molluscs and small fishes on or near the seabed. 

Reproduction

Fish reach sexual maturity at two to three years of age. Sex change occurs over a wide range of sizes from 206 to 417 mm (8.1 to 16.4 inches) and over a wide range of ages (two to nine years). Not all fish change sex: some are primary males in which ovarian tissue atrophies before maturity, others are secondary males that behave as females for several cycles before changing sex, and some remain female even as they grow large, with only rudimentary male tissue. 

Fishing

It is fish commercially important.