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Slender Grinner
Saurida gracilis Quoy & Gaimard, 1824
Above and below: A Slender Grinner at a depth of 15 m, Osprey Reef, Coral Sea, November 1998. View larger image.
The Slender Grinner is an elongate fish with a short based dorsal fin and a dorsal adipose fin. It has a large mouth with sharp slender teeth that are exposed when the mouth is closed.
This species is pale with red and brown mottling above and whitish below. There is a row of dark blotches on the lower sides and three black blotches on the upper sides towards the rear of the body.
The Slender Grinner grows to 28 cm in length.
It occurs in tropical marine waters of the Indo-West and Central Pacific.
In Australia it is known from north-western Western Australia, around the tropical north of the country and south to the southern coast of Queensland. It is usually seen on sandy seabeds near coral reefs in depths from 1 m to 12 m.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
This species has also been called the Gracile Lizardfish, Slender Lizardfish and Slender Saury.
The Slender Grinner looks similar to the lizardfishes (family Synodontidae) of the genera Synodus and Trachinocephalus. Fishes in the genus Saurida, such as the Slender Grinner, have nine pelvic fin rays and teeth that are exposed when the mouth is closed.
Fishes in the genus Synodus have eight pelvic fin rays and teeth that are not visible when the mouth is closed. The genus Trachinocephalus contains a single species, T.myops (view fact sheet). This species has a 'pug-headed' appearance and blue stripes on the side of the body.
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 292.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
- Michael, S.W. 1998. Reef Fishes. Volume 1. A Guide to Their Identification, Behaviour, and Captive Care. Microcosm. Pp. 624.
- Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
- Russell, B.C. 1999. Synodontidae. in Carpenter, K.E. & V.H. Niem (Eds). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 3. Batoid fishes, chimaeras and bony fishes part 1 (Elopidae to Linophrynidae). FAO, Rome. Pp. iii-vi, 1398-2068.
