Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Fish caught from shore at Los Barriles, Baja California Sur, January 2017. Length: 27 cm (11 inches). Catch and identification courtesy of Ian Franck, New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada. Noteworthy is the red coloration compared to the more typical fish pictured below.
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Fish caught off the beach at Km 21, Cabo Real, Baja California Sur, April 2011. Length: 30 cm (12 inches).
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off Buena Vista, Baja California Sur, June 2017. Photograph courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off Loreto, Baja California Sur, October 2024. Photograph courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Underwater photograph taken in Zihuantanejo Bay, Guerrero, March 2018. Photograph courtesy of Ron Woheau, Zihuantanejo.
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Underwater photograph taken in Zihuantanejo Bay, Guerrero, December 2019. Photograph courtesy of Maude Jette, Dive Zihuataenjo, www.Divezihuatanejo.com.
Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, September 2021. Photograph courtesy of Kevin Erwin, Seattle, Washington. Note: this large school contains a handful of Spottail Grunts.
The Mexican Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus, is a member of the Goatfish or Mullidae Family, and is known in Mexico as chivao barbón, and locally as chivato. Globally, there are six species in the genus Mulloidichthys, of which three are found in Mexican waters, one in the Atlantic and two in the Pacific Ocean.
The Mexican Goatfish has an elongated, cylindrical, and slightly compressed body. The undersides of their head and body are nearly flat. They are yellow to greenish yellow in overall color and whitish ventrally. They have a broad bright yellow mid-lateral stripe with thin blue stripes immediately above and below that run from the eye to the caudal fin. Their caudal fin is bright yellow. Their eyes are set high on the head. Their head has a blunt snout, their eyes are set high on the head and their mouth is small and protrusible with small villiform or conical teeth and have 2 long barbels on their chin. Their anal fin has 1 or 2 spines and 6 rays; their first dorsal fin has 8 spines; their caudal fin is forked; their second dorsal fin has 1 spine and 8 rays; and, their pectoral fins have 16 or 17 rays. They have 25 to 31 gill rakers. They are covered with large rough scales.
The Mexican Goatfish inhabits coral and rocky reefs and adjacent sand and rubble bottoms from the intertidal zone to depths up to 110 m (360 feet). They reach a maximum length of 40 cm (15.7 inches); this maximum was established by a fish caught by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area in December 2010. As of January 1, 2024, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 0.45 kg (1 lbs 0 ozs) with the fish caught in coastal waters off Los Barrilles, Baja California Sur by my good friend Luke Ovgard, March 2022. Their barbells have sensory organs utilized for finding food, which consists mainly of small bottom-living animals such as crustaceans, mollusks, worms, and other small invertebrates. During the day, they form large non-feeding schools that commingle with other species and can change color to blend into the school. They also collect at cleaning stations serviced by Butterflyfish, where they hover vertically with their heads down and barbels extended and reportedly change to a darker color to make the parasites more obvious to the cleaners. At night, they feed as individuals. Males also use their barbels to attract females during courtship. When not in use, the barbels are tucked tightly under the chin. Goatfish are pelagic spawners releasing buoyant eggs that travel the currents for several days until hatching.
The Mexican Goatfish is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean with the exception that they are absent from the entire west coast of Baja.
The Mexican Goatfish is easy to identify being one of only three Goatfish species found in Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean. It is significantly different in both color and body shape from the Bigscale Goatfish, Pseudupeneus grandisquamis, which is normally found in deep water far off shore. They are virtually identical to the Yellowfin Goatfish, Mulloidichthys dentatus, but have fewer pectoral fin rays, shorter pectoral fins, shorter barbels and fewer gill rakers .
From a conservation perspective the Mexican Goatfish is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. At certain times of the year they readily accessible from the beach at pre-dawn hours in the greater Los Cabos area at certain times of the year. They are deemed to be of limited value except to substance fishermen and are normally considered a “catch and release.” I have a report that in yonder years they were abundant and utilized frequently as a live bait targeting the now long departed “big fish.”