Silver Seatrout, Cynoscion nothus
Silver Seatrout, Cynoscion nothus. Fish caught off the Dunedin Causeway, Dunedin, Florida, March 2012. Length: 25 cm (9.8 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Ryan Crutchfield, Tampa, Florida.
Silver Seatrout, Cynoscion nothus. Fish caught from coastal waters off Galveston, Texas, May 2017. Length: 26 cm (10 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).
The Silver Seatrout, Cynoscion nothus, is a member of the Croaker or Sciaenidae Family, and is also known as the Silver Weakfish and the White Trout and in Mexico as corvina corvina plateada. Globally, there are twenty-four species in the genus Cynoscion, of which thirteen are found in Mexican waters, three in the Atlantic and ten in the Pacific Ocean.
The Silver Seatrout has an elongated and somewhat compressed body. They have a silvery-gray coloration dorsally changing abruptly to white ventrally with many having small dark spots that form oblique irregular rearward sloping rows on their upper sides with yellowish anal, caudal, pectoral and pelvic fins and a dusky dorsal fin. Their head has a short snout with large eyes, a large oblique mouth with a slightly projecting lower jaw that has a pair of prominent canine teeth at the tip of the upper jaw and an enlarged inner row of widely spaced teeth on the lower jaw, and two pores on the sides of the snout. Their anal fin has 2 spines and 8 to 11 rays; their caudal fin has longer lower half with a straight or blunt margin; their first dorsal fin has 11 spines; their second dorsal fin has 26 to 31 rays; their pectoral fins are half the length of their heads; and, their pelvic fins are longer than their pectoral fins. They have 11 to 15 short gill rakers. They are covered with large, rough scales. Their lateral line is prominent and is arched anteriorly and straight well before the level of the anus and extends to the end of the caudal fin.
The Silver Seatrout is a demersal schooling species that is found predominantly offshore. They are known to make seasonal migrations to warmer waters during the winter months being found inshore adjacent to steep drop-offs in bays and estuaries at depths up to 30 m (100 feet) in waters with high salinities and temperatures between 5oC (41oF) and 30oC (86oF). They are the smallest of the seatrouts with the majority being the in the 25 cm (10 inch) to 35 cm (14 inch) range weighing about 225 g (0.5 lbs). They reach a maximum of 40 cm (16 inches) in length and 0.56 kg (1 lb 4 oz) in weight. As of January 1, 2023, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 0.56 kg (1 lb 4 oz) with the fish caught in coastal waters off Aransas Pass, Texas in November 2006. They consume small crustaceans, small fish and shrimps. In turn they are preyed upon by larger fish (alligator gar, barracuda, striped bass, and tarpon) and birds, especially brown pelicans and osprey. Reproduction occurs offshore in deep waters with a prolonged season during the spring, summer and fall that has large clutch sizes with synchronous spawning. They have lifespans of up to two years. The Silver Seatrout 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 Silver Seatrout is a resident of Mexican waters of the Atlantic Ocean but is limited to the Western Gulf of Mexico from the Texas border to the west coast of the Yucatán off Campeche.
The Silver Seatrout can be and is frequently confused with the Sand Seatrout, Cynoscion arenarius (yellow color; pelvic fins are longer than pectoral fins; smaller eye; larger stature), and the Spotted Seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus (back and dorsal fins headily spotted; larger stature).
From a conservation perspective the Silver Seatrout is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are considered to be a minor component of the annual seatrout catch but accurate numbers are not available as catch numbers always include the Sand Seatrout, Cynoscion arenarius and the Spotted Seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus. They are caught in Mexico via commercial fishermen utilizing hook-and-line and gill nets with the larger ones sold commercially and the smaller ones discarded. Due to their abundance and small stature the Silver Seatrout is not regulated. They are also caught as a significant by-catch of the mullet, sierra, wahoo and shrimp trawl fisheries. They are considered to be a quality human food fish but are small in stature, difficult to clean and have a short shelf life. They are considered to be hated trash fish by some anglers.