Sealife guideThe smallmouth gruntHaemulon chrysargyreum
Taxonomy
- Common name: Smallmouth grunt
- French name: Gorette à petite bouche, gorette tibouche
- Spanish name: Ronco boquichica
- Scientific name: Haemulon chrysargyreum (Günther, 1859)
- Family name: Haemulidae
- Order name: Perciformes
- Class name: Actinopterygii
Description
The smallmouth grunt is a medium-sized fish, typically around 6 inches long, with a maximum length of about 8 inches. The smallmouth grunt has an oblong, slightly elongated body with a silvery-gray color and each side is marked by six broad yellow longitudinal stripes. All of its fins—pelvic, dorsal, anal and caudal—are yellow. A common trait of grunts is that the inside of their mouth is red.

The smallmouth grunt has a silvery-gray body with broad yellow longitudinal stripes along each side and all of its fins are yellow
The smallmouth grunt’s dorsal fin has 12 spiny rays and 13 soft rays, while the anal fin usually has 3 spiny rays and 9 soft rays, occasionally 10.
Its name, smallmouth grunt, comes from having the smallest mouth of all grunt species.
In its juvenile stage, the smallmouth grunt is distinguished by a dark central longitudinal stripe running the length of its body.
Range
The smallmouth grunt is commonly found along the coasts of the Caribbean sea, the southern Gulf of Mexico and parts of the adjacent Atlantic ocean. It inhabits the tropical waters of the western Atlantic, ranging from southern Florida in the north to the coasts of Brazil in the south, including the coasts of Central America and the islands of the Caribbean, such as the Keys, the Bahamas and
Guadeloupe.
Habitat
Smallmouth grunts typically live in shallow waters from the surface down to about 100 feet. They often form schools around coral reefs, positioning themselves near the bottom, along rocks, sheltered under rock overhangs or the large branches of
elkhorn coral.
Diet
The smallmouth grunt is a carnivorous fish that hunts at night. Its diet consists mainly of small invertebrates, such as shrimp, mollusks, and marine worms.
In the marine food chain, the smallmouth grunt is preyed upon by larger fish that inhabit coral reefs, like groupers.
Reproduction
Smallmouth grunts reproduce sexually.
Did you know ?
The common English name « grunt » comes from the sound the fish makes, which resembles the grunting of a pig. This sound is produced by the fish's well-developed teeth located in its throat.
Grunts are related to snappers but are generally smaller and have more deeply forked tails.
The smallmouth grunt is listed as many other marine species within The
IUCN Red List of threatened species. The smallmouth grunt appears in the
IUCN Red List since 2015 within the category Least Concern !
Tips for observing
Schools of grunts rarely consist of just one species. It’s common to see a mix of species, including the
blue striped grunt, the
white grunt, the
french grunt and the smallmouth grunt, making it tricky to identify the odd one out unless you carefully examine the stripe patterns and colors.

Most often, schools of smallmouth grunts position themselves near the bottom, sheltered by the large branches of elk horn coral
Within the same genus

White grunt
(Haemulon plumierii)

Blue striped grunt
(Haemulon sciurus)

French grunt
(Haemulon flavolineatum)

Cottonwick grunt
(Haemulon melanurum)
Within the same family

Oriental sweetlips
(Plectorhinchus vittatus)

Blackspotted rubberlips
(Plectorhinchus gaterinus)

Diagonal-banded Sweetlip
(Plectorhinchus lineatus)

Ribboned sweetlips
(Plectorhinchus polytaenia)

Harlequin sweetlips
(Plectorhinchus chaetodonoides)

Painted sweetlips
(Diagramma pictum)

Porkfish
(Anisotremus virginicus)

Black margate
(Anisotremus surinamensis)
Explore also

Clown snake eel
(Ophichthus bonaparti)

Pajama cardinalfish
(Sphaeramia nematoptera)

Striped fangblenny
(Meiacanthus grammistes)

Brown meagre
(Sciaena umbra)

Blotched sandgoby
(Fusigobius inframaculatus)

Bluespotted grouper
(Cephalopholis cyanostigma)

Yellow boxfish
(Ostracion cubicus)

Coral grouper
(Cephalopholis miniata)
The marine species from Florida

Crevalle jack
(Caranx hippos)

Elkhorn coral
(Acropora palmata)

Florida manatee
(Trichechus manatus latirostris)

Gray snapper
(Lutjanus griseus)

Longspined porcupinefish
(Diodon holocanthus)

Schoolmaster snapper
(Lutjanus apodus)

Scrawled cowfish
(Acanthostracion quadricornis)

Scrawled filefish
(Aluterus scriptus)
Les destinations de plongée

Guadeloupe island

La Guadeloupe

Where to go scuba diving in Guadeloupe ?
Dive centers

'Les Ilets' dive center

Noa dive center

Sea Dwellers Dive Center