Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis
Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis, Juvenile. Fish caught from coastal waters off Sebastian, Florida, November 2021. Length: 7.9 cm (3.1 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, Sebastian, Florida.
Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis, Juvenile. Fish caught off the Dania Beach Pier, Dania Beach, Florida, April 2019. Length: 7.9 cm (3.1 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis, Juvenile. Fish caught from within the Jupiter Inlet, Jupiter, Florida, April 2019. Length: 12.4 cm (4.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Pompano Beach, Florida, December 2016, Length: 15 cm (5.9 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).
Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Deerfield Beach, Florida, April 2019. Length: 16 cm (6.3 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Luke Ovgard, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
The Black Margate has a deep compressed tapering body with a depth that is 39% to 43% of standard depth. They have a silvery gray coloration with a wide dark band just behind their pectoral fins. Their scales have dark spots on the upper body. Juveniles have 2 black stripes and a black spot at the base of their caudal fin. All their fins are dusky with the anal and ventral fins being darker. Their heads are sloping with a relatively large mouth, thick lips, strong pharyngeal teeth, a blunt snout, and serrated gill covers. They have a high back and a notched tail. Their anal fin has 3 spines (the second being thick) and 8 to 10 rays; their caudal fin is forked; and, their dorsal fin has 12 spines (the fourth being the longest) and 16 to 18 rays. They have 16 to 18 gill rakers.The Black Margate, Anisotremus surinamensis, is a member of the Grunt or Haemulidae Family, and is known in Mexico as burriquete and zapatero. Globally, there are ten species in the genus Anisotremus, of which six are found in Mexican waters, two in the Atlantic and two in the Pacific Ocean.
The Black Margate is found inshore preferring steeply sloping rocky bottoms or rocky reefs in the first 20 m (65 feet) of the water column. They often shelter in caves, ledges, and wrecks. They are the second largest member of the Grunt Family reaching a maximum of 76 cm (2 feet 6 inches) in length and 5.8 kg (13 lbs) in weight. As of January 1, 2024, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 6.92 kg (15 lbs 4 oz), which is significantly larger than what the scientific community believes, with the fish caught in coastal waters off Fort Pierce, Florida in February 2011. They are found as solitary individuals or in small groups. They feed at night on crustaceans, mollusks, smaller fish, and urchins. The Black Margate 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 Black Margate is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Caribbean.
The Black Margate is a fairly easy fish to identify due to its large rubber lips, deep body, and the wide dark band behind its pectoral fin. It is similar in body shape to the French Grunt, Haemulon flavolineatum (white coloration with numerous yellow stripes) and the Margate, Haemulon album (silvery white coloration).
From a conservation perspective the Black Margate is currently considered to be Data Deficient. They are targeted by recreational anglers, primarily during spawning season in the spring and caught via drift fishing using cut clams, fish or squid for bait, when they form massive schools in shallow water. They are an important commercial fish and are marketed fresh as a light, moist, white, and sweet fish. They are unfriendly to approaches by divers. They are also sold to the aquarium trade on a limited basis.