Family : Albulidae (Bonefishes) , subfamily: Albulinae
Order : Albuliformes  (bonefishes)
Class : Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Fishbase Name : Bonefish
Fish Name : Albula vulpes
Max size : 104 cm TL (male/unsexed; Ref. 7251); max. published weight: 10,000 g (Ref. 37955)
Environment : reef-associated; amphidromous ; depth range 0 - 84 m
Climate : subtropical; 45°N - 31°S
Global Importance : fisheries: minor commercial; bait: usually
Resilience: Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.3; tm=2)Distribution : Worldwide in warm seas. Hawaiian species have been verified by electrophoretic analysis (Ref. 5577), hence, Albula vulpes might be further split. The next available name for the West African form is Albula goreensis, Valenciennes, 1846. Eastern Pacific: California, USA to Peru (Ref. 2850). Western Atlantic: North Carolina, USA to Florida, Bahamas, Gulf of Mexico, Antilles and Caribbean to Brazil (Ref. 26938). Northwest Atlantic: Canada (Ref. 5951).
Diagnosis : Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 15-19; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 7-9; Vertebrae: 69-74. Branchiostegal rays 12-14 (Ref. 4639). Silvery with dusky fins; base of pectorals yellow (Ref. 3970). Body elongate and fusiform (Ref. 4832). Last ray of dorsal and anal fins not prolonged; head region naked; spot and band absent on head; margin of nasal pore not black (Ref. 13608). Bluntly conical snout extends beyond inferior mouth (Ref. 26938). Pectoral and pelvic axillary scales present; a single long scale on each side of membrane between each ray of dorsal and anal fins (Ref. 4832).
Biology : Inhabits shallow coastal waters, estuaries and bays, over sand and mud bottoms (Ref. 3237). Often in schools, except large individuals which are solitary (Ref. 7251). Dorsal fin may show above surface (Ref. 42064). More or less pelagic but feeds on benthic worms, crustaceans, and mollusks (Ref. 2850). Tolerates oxygen poor water by inhaling air into a lung-like airbladder (Ref. 9710). Flesh is bony and not esteemed (Ref. 9268). One of the most important game fishes worldwide (Ref. 26938)
Threatened : Dangerous:  
Dangerous : reports of ciguatera poisoning , Halstead, B.W., P.S. Auerbach and D.R. Campbell. 1990
Coordinator :
Main Ref : Whitehead, P.J.P.. 1990. (Ref. 4447)

India country information
Common Names : Roundjaw bonefish, എലിമീന്, ഇലിമീന് , Elimeen, Long-finned eel, Miemas
Status : native
Salinity : brackish, marine
Uses : no uses