Black seabream

Black seabream
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Sparidae
Genus: Spondyliosoma
Species: S. cantharus
Binomial name
Spondyliosoma cantharus
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Map showing black seabream
Range of black seabream

The black seabream (Spondyliosoma cantharus) is a species of Sparidae fishes. They are recognisable by their oval compressed body and jaws containing 4-6 rows of slender teeth which are larger at the front. They are silvery in colour with blue and pink tinges and broken longitudinal gold lines. They can reach a maximum size of 60 cm in length. They live in northern Europe and in the Mediterranean, usually found on the inshore shelf at depths varying from 5 to 300 m. They are usually found in schools feeding on seaweeds and invertebrates. They breed in February to May leaving eggs in the demersal zone.

Black seabream are protogynous meaning females have the ability to change to males.

External links

Media related to Spondyliosoma cantharus at Wikimedia Commons


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