catalog Synodontidae · predator

inshore lizardfish

Synodus foetens

EstuarySea

A flat-headed, large-mouthed ambush predator of sand, mud and seagrass bottoms in bays and estuaries. It gets hooked all the time by accident, and sport anglers see it as a nuisance.

Also called: lagartixa, lagarto, tira-vira, inshore lizardfish

forecast for inshore lizardfish where found

Scientific illustration of Inshore lizardfish

common size: 25–40 cm
maximum: 54 cm
common weight: 0.1–0.5 kg
record/max.: 0.9 kg
depth: 0–200 m
ideal water: 25–32 °C

overview

who is the inshore lizardfish

The lagartixa (Synodus foetens), the 'inshore lizardfish' of English-speaking fishers, is an ambush predator: it waits still or buried on the bottom and lunges at fish; it also eats shrimp, crabs and squid. It lives in bays, coves, channels, saltwater creeks and rivers, over sand, mud and seagrass, from the shore down to 200 m, and FishBase records salinities of 4 to 60 ppt. It ranges from Massachusetts and the northern Gulf of Mexico to Brazil. It reaches 53.8 cm and 900 g, and is common at 30 cm. It has subsistence use, and FishBase notes that it is often caught by sport anglers, who consider it a nuisance.

fun facts

It buries itself on the bottom to wait for prey and strikes with a sudden rush.
FishBase notes that sport anglers catch it often and see it as a nuisance.
Juveniles live loose in the water near the coast; adults go to the bottom.

how to recognize it

identification

Elongated, cylindrical body, flattened head, wider than tall, with a triangular, pointed snout that extends past the lower jaw tip. The mouth is huge, extends past the eye, and has large, sharp, folding teeth on the jaws, tongue and pharynx. Scales are small, with a group of large elongated scales below the base of the pectoral fin; the cheek has 6 to 7 oblique rows. There is one dorsal fin with 10 to 13 soft rays and a small adipose fin. The calango (S. intermedius) has 9 to 13 dark bars on the trunk and a black spot on the shoulder, and prefers sand near reefs.

how inshore lizardfish fishing looks

Loading the next 7 days…

Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.

distribution

where found

open on the large map

According to FishBase, it ranges from Massachusetts and the northern Gulf of Mexico to Brazil. In Brazil, the species' latitude range (43°N to 29°S) covers all four coasts, up to the border between Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, and ICMBio has a national assessment record. In Latin America, FishBase lists Mexico, the Caribbean coast of Central America, Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas and the Caribbean islands.

Habitat: Bays, coves, channels, saltwater creeks and rivers, over sand, mud and seagrass, from the shore down to 200 m. Digs into the bottom to hide. Tolerates salinities of 4 to 60 ppt.

coast

North CoastNortheast CoastSoutheast CoastSouth Coastcoastalshelf

calendar and clock

when to fish

best season

time of year

JanFebSeaAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

A resident fish of shallow, warm waters, caught all year. We found no harvest calendar; the app's weights are estimates.

best time of day

Daytime, with peaks at dawn and dusk. Ambush predator that hunts by sight; should be more active by day and at dusk. Editorial estimate; we found no study of its activity rhythm.

weather, water and behavior

what affects the inshore lizardfish
sensitivity The little bars show how much each factor affects this species. Five full: it feels it a lot.

cold and cold fronts

Warm-water fish (FishBase gives 25 to 35 °C): cold water slows it down.

atmospheric pressure

Small effect.

moon

Small effect.

rain

Tolerates brackish, murky water; rain does not drive it away.

water level

Not applicable at sea. In an estuary, it tolerates salinities of 4 to 60 ppt.

noise

Still and camouflaged on the bottom; noise hardly drives it away.

wind

Strong wind makes it hard to keep bait on the shallow bottom.

tide

The moving tide brings food to channels and banks.

depth

From the shore to 200 m; most catches are in shallow bottom.

technique, gear and bait

how to fish

Natural bait on the bottom Bottom fishing from a boat Bottom casting

rod: 6' to 7', 8 to 20 lb
spinning / baitcasting reel: spinning reel 2500 to 4000
line: braided line 15 to 25 lb
leader: fluorocarbon 30 to 40 lb (teeth cut thin line)
hook: single 1/0 to 3/0 hook

lures

jig heads with silicone tail
small metal jigs

natural baits

shrimp
strips of fish
lula

accessories

long-nose pliers
luvas
damp cloth

tip from an angler

When baits come back cut or gone on a shallow sand bottom, it's usually the lagartixa: change spots or use a heavier leader.

what the law says

rules for the inshore lizardfish

Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
Conservation: Not on the Brazilian national list (Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667/2026). ICMBio published a national assessment profile in 2025; the category was not checked for this profile. We found no specific federal rule for the species.

Mexico: up to 5 per species and 10 saltwater fish per day

5 specimens of the species per angler per day, within the limit of 10 saltwater fish

In recreational fishing in Mexican federal waters, each angler may keep up to 10 marine fish per day, no more than 5 of the same species. The lagartixa is not among the species reserved for recreational fishing (marlin, sailfish, swordfish, tarpon, roosterfish and dorado, up to 50 nautical miles from shore, item 0.3 of the rule) nor among those with their own limit (billfish, sharks, seatrout, tarpon, dorado, roosterfish and baya), and it has no quota of its own. Fish over the limit go back into the water alive, and the recreational fish may not be sold.

Source: Amendment to NOM-017-PESC-1994 (recreational sport fishing in federal waters of Mexico), signed Oct 14, 2013, items 0.3, 4.9.1, 4.9.5 and 4.11 (Sagarpa/Conapesca)

Colombia: AUNAP license and catch-and-release in sport fishing

Individual AUNAP license; catch-and-release guidanceconfirm with the agency

AUNAP Resolution 0549 of 2022 sets the guidelines for recreational sport fishing in Colombia. Anglers need a permit: for an individual, Colombian or foreign, it is a personal, non-transferable card. The rule makes "catch and release" the guidance and admits keeping only part of the catch for personal consumption, respecting the minimum sizes it sets. We did not confirm the daily limit or the minimum sizes by species: check with AUNAP before keeping fish.

Source: Resolución AUNAP 0549 of 2022 (fishing management guidelines for sport fishing for recreational purposes), arts. 6 and 8; Official Gazette of Mar 25, 2022

catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.

Hold it with a damp cloth and remove the hook with long-nose pliers: it has many sharp teeth, even on the tongue. It handles release in shallow water well.

in the kitchen

FishBase only records it in subsistence fishing and gives no culinary assessment. Sport anglers see it as a nuisance.

calculator

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

total length (cm)

Length-weight relationship W = a·L^b (a = 0.00468, b = 3.13; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.

estimated weight

—

sources and references

The season weights (months), the time of day and the sensitivities (cold, pressure, moon, wind, rain, tide, strong light, murky water and noise) are the app's editorial estimates, based on the literature below and on the field experience of anglers and guides. They are not official data nor a measurement made for this species, and they may vary by region and year. Closed seasons and legal rules appear in the rules section, with the norm and a link.

scientific FishBase: Synodus foetens (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Synodus foetensNames by country and language. Lagartixa and tira-vira appear in the Portuguese list.
official Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667, de 27 de abril de 2026: Lista Nacional Oficial de Espécies da Fauna Ameaçadas de Extinção (peixes e invertebrados aquáticos)The species is not on the list. Checked in the DOU of April 28, 2026.
scientific IUCN Red List: Synodus foetens (avaliação global: Pouco Preocupante, LC, 29/01/2013)Global assessment. Link given on the FishBase profile (Red List, version 2025-2).
official ICMBio/SALVE: Ficha de Synodus foetens (avaliação nacional do risco de extinção)National assessment by ICMBio, published in 2025. DOI checked in Crossref on Oct 13, 2026; the assigned category was not checked for this profile.
scientific Pinto, M. F.; Mourão, J. S.; Alves, R. R. N. (2015). Use of ichthyofauna by artisanal fishermen at two protected areas along the coast of Northeast Brazil. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 11: 20Popular names cited by artisanal fishers in Batoque (CE): 'lagartixa' and 'lagarto' for Synodus foetens. Table 2 checked on 13/10/2026.
scientific Carpenter, K. E. (org.) (2002). The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Vol. 2: Bony fishes part 1 (Acipenseridae to Grammatidae). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. Roma: FAO.Reference identification guide for the species' families in the western Atlantic. Index checked Oct 13, 2026.
official DOF: Modificação da NOM-017-PESC-1994, para regular a pesca deportivo-recreativa em águas de jurisdição federal do MéxicoText signed Oct 14, 2013. Species reservation for sport fishing (item 0.3), daily quotas at sea (4.9.1), catch and release of the surplus (4.9.5) and a ban on selling the fish (4.11). Text checked Oct 13, 2026; the DOF publication date does not appear in the text consulted. The daily limit was confirmed only for Mexico; for other countries we did not confirm species-specific rules.
official AUNAP (Colômbia): Resolução 0549 de 2022, lineamientos de ordenación pesquera para la pesca deportiva con fines recreativosWe checked, in a partial transcription of the text, what the rule says about the personal license (art. 6) and about "catch and release" as the premise, with retention for personal consumption only within minimum sizes (art. 8). We could not read the articles on the daily quota and minimum sizes, so those figures are left out.

don't confuse

similar species

Synodontidae

Sand diver

Synodus intermedius

Sandy-bottom lizardfish near reefs and rocks, from 3 to 320 m, with yellow stripes and dark bars on the body. An ambush predator, it is hooked by accident in bottom fishing.

Sea

time of year