Spotted weakfish (Cynoscion nebulosus) is a saltwater, brackish species recorded in the United States. It is found at depths of ≥ 10 m.
Scientific name: Cynoscion nebulosus · Water: Saltwater, Brackish
Size: up to 100 cm
The spotted weakfish is a demersal sciaenid that inhabits river estuaries and shallow coastal marine waters over sand bottoms, often associated with seagrass beds, and it also occurs in salt marshes and tidal pools of high salinity. It feeds mainly on crustaceans and fishes, and it is an important food and sport fish throughout its range. It is recorded from 10 m downwards, with no maximum depth recorded for it, and it also enters brackish water. Its range is the western Atlantic, from New York to southern Florida and the entire Gulf of Mexico, with a recent report from the Guadalquivir River estuary in Spain. Maximum length is about 100 cm total length, commonly about 36 cm, and it can live 18 years, maturing at about 26.8 cm. It is a commercial species and a gamefish, with a medium price category. Fishing vulnerability is high at 58 of 100 and resilience medium, and climate vulnerability is high at 60 of 100. IUCN lists it as least concern.
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