silver seatrout
Cynoscion nothus
Silver seatrout from beaches and river mouths, occurring in the Gulf of Mexico and on the eastern United States. It has small commercial fishing and is considered a sport fish.
Also called: pescada-prateada-do-golfo, corvina plateada, trucha plateada, silver seatrout
- maximum
- 36 cm
- depth
- 2–18 m
who is the silver seatrout
The Gulf silver seatrout is a fish of the family Sciaenidae, with a spindle-shaped body, gray above and silvery below. It reaches 36 cm, with a common size of 25 cm. It lives in shallow coastal waters, from 2 to 18 m, on sandy bottoms near beaches and river mouths. It feeds mainly on crustaceans and fish. It has small commercial fishing and is considered a sport fish. It is easy to confuse with the American weakfish, which lives in the same region.
Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the silver seatrout; in the meantime, see the similar species.
fun facts
- It lives briefly: the maximum recorded age is 1.2 years.
- There are records of occurrence on the Campeche Bank, Mexico.
identification
Gray above, changing abruptly to silvery below, with a lightly spotted back: sometimes there are irregular rows of very faint dots, while the American weakfish has dots forming very visible wavy lines. The dorsal fin is dark, and the others pale to yellowish. The mouth is large and oblique, with the lower jaw protruding, and the upper jaw has a pair of large canine teeth at the tip.
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.
Essential profile: the index uses a general fish model (weather, sun, moon and tide), without a season or time of day specific to this species.
where found
Lives in the western Atlantic, from Maryland (USA) to northeastern Florida and throughout the Gulf of Mexico, including the Campeche Bank. In Latin America it occurs in Cuba, Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago.
Habitat: Shallow coastal waters, 2 to 18 m, on sandy bottoms, near beaches and river mouths.
rules for the silver seatrout
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.
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.
Harmless, but the canine teeth of the upper jaw can cut, so handle it carefully.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01259, b = 3.0; 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
Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.
- scientific FishBase: Cynoscion nothus (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Cynoscion nothusNames by country and language.
