Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis
Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, October 2020. Length: 20 cm (7.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).
Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis. Fish caught from within Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur, March 2016. Length: 31 cm (12 inches).
Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, October 2018. Length: 46 cm (18 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of George Brinkman, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, October 2016. Length: 48 cm (19 inches). Catch courtesy of Michael Ells, Big Rapids, Michigan. Photograph and identification courtesy of George Brinkman, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, March 2013. Length: 76 cm (2 feet 6 inches). Weight: 6.4 kg (14 lbs). Photograph courtesy of Jason Potts, Mazatlán. Identification courtesy of H.J. Walker, Jr., Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California.
The Golden Croaker, Micropogonias altipinnis, is a member of the Croaker or Sciaenidae Family, that is also known as the Highfin Croaker and the Tallfin Croaker and in Mexico as chano sureño. Globally there are six global members of the genus Micropogonias, of which three are found Mexican waters, all in the Pacific Ocean.
The Golden Croaker has an elongated moderately compressed body. They have a silvery coloration and a golden hue associated with the scale rows above the lateral line, which creates brown longitudinal streaks. Their fins are generally yellowish, however, their caudal and dorsal fins are dusky. Their head features a prominent snout, a small mouth under the snout, thin lips, simple teeth, relatively small eyes, four or five small barbels along the inner side of their lower jaw, and a strong serrated gill cover with two prominent spines. Their anal fin has 2 spines, the second being robust and longer than half the length of the first anal ray, and 7 or 8 rays; their caudal fin has a short blunt point with a slightly concave upper lobe; and, their first dorsal fin has 10 spines and is tall and reaching beyond the origin of the second dorsal fin when depressed; their second dorsal fin has 1 spine and 19 to 23 rays. They have 24 or 25 gill rakers. Their body is covered with large scales.
The Golden Croaker is a benthopelagic species found along sandy shores and in bays, estuaries, and lagoons at depths up to 104 m (340 feet). They reach a maximum of 80 cm (2 feet 7 inches) in length. They are voracious ambush predators feeding on small fish and squid. The Golden Croaker is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Golden Croaker is widespread in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. In Mexican waters, however, they have a limited distribution being found from Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur, southward along the southwest coast of Baja and in the southern half of the Sea of Cortez, and south along the coast of the mainland to Guatemala.
The Golden Croaker can be confused with the Gulf Croaker, Micropogonias megalops (27-29 dorsal rays; dark fins; maximum length 40 cm) and the Slender Croaker, Micropogonias ectenes (23-26 dorsal rays; dark fins; maximum length 40 cm).
From a conservation perspective the Golden Croaker is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are an esteemed food fish caught primarily with trawls and seines and sold fresh in local markets.