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Sparus aurata  Linnaeus, 1758

Gilthead seabream
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Sparus aurata
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Portugal country information

Common names: Dourada
Occurrence: native
Salinity: brackish
Abundance: occasional (usually not seen) | Ref: Veiga, P., J. Ribeiro, J.M.S. Gonçalves and K. Erzini, 2010
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: commercial | Ref: FAO Fishery Information, Data and Statistics Service, 1993
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments: Found in Tagus estuary (Ref. 51031). Recorded from the south and southwest coast (Ref. 85184).
National Checklist: Portugal
Country Information: httpss://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/po.html
National Fisheries Authority:
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Hureau, J.-C., 1991
National Database: Portuguese Freshwater Fishes

Classification / Names

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Perciformes (Perch-likes) > Sparidae (Porgies)
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Common names from other countries

Дорада (=аурата), Dorade royale, Dorada, ... more

Main reference

Bauchot, M.-L. and J.-C. Hureau. 1990. (Ref. 3688)
 References | Biblio | Coordinator | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 70.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 35388); common length : 35.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 4781); max. published weight: 17.2 kg (Ref. 40637); max. reported age: 11 years (Ref. 7253)

Length at first maturity
 Lm ?, range 33 - 40 cm

Environment

Marine; brackish; demersal; depth range 1 - 150 m (Ref. 35388), usually 1 - 30 m (Ref. 54890)

Climate / Range

Subtropical, preferred 26°C (Ref. 107945); 62°N - 15°N, 17°W - 43°E (Ref. 54890)

Distribution

Eastern Atlantic: British Isles, Strait of Gibraltar to Cape Verde and around the Canary Islands; also in the Mediterranean (Ref. 3688). Reported from the Black Sea (Ref. 12781). Reports from New Zealand refer to Pagrus auratus (Foster 1801) (Ref. 5755, 9258).
 Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 11; Dorsal soft rays (total): 13-14; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 11 - 12. Body tall, with large black spot on the gill cover. Snout more than twice as long as the eye diameter (Ref. 35388).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in seagrass beds and sandy bottoms as well as in the surf zone commonly to depths of about 30 m, but adults may occur to 150 m depth. A sedentary fish, either solitary or in small aggregations. In spring, they often occur in brackish water coastal lagoons and estuaries. Mainly carnivorous, accessorily herbivorous (Ref. 3688). Feed on shellfish, including mussels and oysters. One of the most important fishes in saline and hypersaline aquaculture. Utilized fresh and eaten steamed, pan-fried, broiled, boiled, microwaved and baked (Ref. 9987).

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

  Least Concern (LC) 

Threat to humans

  Harmless



Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes

Tools

Bio-Quiz | E-book | Field guide | Identification keys | Length-frequency wizard | Life-history tool | Point map | Classification Tree

Special reports

Check for Aquarium maintenance | Check for Species Fact Sheets | Check for Aquaculture Fact Sheets

Download XML

Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

Alien/Invasive Species database | BHL | Check for other websites | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO(Aquaculture: production, species profile; fisheries: production, species profile; publication : search) | FIRMS (Stock assessments) | GenBank(genome, nucleotide) | GOBASE | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | iSpecies | National databases | Public aquariums | PubMed | Scirus | Sea Around Us | SeaLifeBase | Tree of Life | uBio | uBio RSS | Wikipedia(Go, Search) | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record | Fishtrace

Estimates of some properties based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805)
 PD50 = 1.0000 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Trophic Level (Ref. 69278)
 3.7   ±0.0 se; Based on diet studies.

Resilience (Ref. 69278)
 Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.28; tmax=11; tm=2-3)

Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)
 Moderate vulnerability (40 of 100)
Price category (Ref. 80766)
 Very high