bigtooth corvina
Isopisthus parvipinnis · Sciaenidae · predator
Pescada with large teeth and well-separated dorsal fins, common on mud bottoms near the coast. Good for frying and good bait.
Also called: pescada-tortinha, tortinha, pescadinha, pescada-chata, dentuça
- common size
- 15–25 cm
- maximum
- 41 cm
- common weight
- 0.0–0.2 kg
- record/max.
- 0.7 kg
- depth
- 1–45 m
- ideal water
- 21–28 °C
the right time
to be on the water
Choose the place and the species. The index, from 0 to 100, combines weather, sun, moon and tide with each fish's habits. Up to 28 days, with each day's confidence.
Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…
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hour by hour
slide your finger or mouse over the chart to see each hoursee hour-by-hour table
why this index at —?
choose the day
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.
the fishing month at a glance
what's the best window for the crew?
Choose how many fishing days. We compare each stretch by its average index, discount days with a warning or closed season, and show the 3 best.
trend for the coming weeks
Line: the middle value of 31 simulations of the American GEFS model. Band: where 8 out of 10 fall. Narrow, firm trend; wide, high uncertainty.
everything about the bigtooth corvina
who is the bigtooth corvina
The pescada-tortinha is a small weakfish common in shallow, murky water over mud and silty sand bottoms, in bays and on the inner shelf, from Costa Rica to southern Brazil. It mainly eats small shrimp. It shows up in large numbers in shrimp trawls and artisanal net fishing, and is used as bait and sold for frying. In recreational fishing, it bites shrimp baits on bottom fishing from boats in bays and channels. It has a large, very oblique mouth and a pair of large canines at the tip of the upper jaw, which gives it the name dentuça.
fun facts
- It is one of the most common pescadas in the bycatch of shrimp trawling.
- The two well-separated dorsal fins are rare among weakfish.
identification
Silver body, darker on the back, with a diffuse dark spot at the base of the pectoral fin. Large, very oblique mouth, protruding lower jaw and a pair of large canines at the tip of the upper jaw. The two dorsal fins are well separated, which sets it apart from other weakfish; the anal fin is long, with 18 to 19 rays. Rarely exceeds 30 cm.
where found
From Amapá to Santa Catarina, most common from the Northeast to Paraná, in bays and on the shallow shelf.
Habitat: Mud and silty sand bottoms in bays, coves and the inner shelf; murky water near river mouths.
coast
states
Amapá, Pará, Maranhão, Piauí, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Sergipe, Bahia, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina
when to fish
best season
Present all year; in the Southeast and South, easier to catch in warm months.
best time of day
Night and twilight. Most active at dusk, at night and on murky-water days.
what affects the bigtooth corvina
sensitivity The little bars show how much each factor affects this species. Five full: it feels it a lot.
cold and cold fronts
Cold water drives schools away from the shallows.
atmospheric pressure
Not very sensitive.
moon
Small effect.
rain
Likes murky water; rain doesn't hurt.
water level
Follows salt water in the bays.
noise
Not very sensitive.
wind
Strong wind gets in the way of light bottom fishing.
tide
A running tide improves the bite.
depth
From 2 to 20 m in most catches.
how to fish
- rod
- 6'0" to 7'0", 8 to 15 lb
- spinning / baitcasting reel
- spinning reel 2000 to 3000
- line
- braided line 10 to 15 lb or monofilament 0.25 to 0.30 mm
- leader
- monofilament 0.35 to 0.40 mm
- hook
- maruseigo 10 to 14
natural baits
- shrimp
- sardine strips
- squid strips
accessories
- olive sinker 20 to 50 g
tip from an angler
Use a rig with two or three small hooks: where there's one, there's a school.
rules for the bigtooth corvina
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 national list (Portaria GM/MMA 1.667/2026). We found no specific federal rule for this species.
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.
Dies easily out of the water; if you release it, do it quickly and without squeezing.
in the kitchen
Good fried whole or as breaded fillets; tender meat.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00794, b = 3.06; FishBase (estimativa bayesiana, comprimento total)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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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 — Isopisthus parvipinnis (ficha da espécie)Names, distribution, biology, length-weight relationship and references. Page checked on October 13, 2026.
- 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)Most recent national list. The species is not on it (search by scientific name in the text published in the DOU, checked on October 13, 2026).
- official ICMBio/SALVE — Ficha de Isopisthus parvipinnis (avaliação nacional do risco de extinção)ICMBio national assessment, published in 2025. DOI checked on Crossref.
- scientific IUCN Red List — Isopisthus parvipinnis (avaliação global: Pouco Preocupante, LC, 03/03/2020)Global assessment. Link given on the FishBase entry (Red List, version 2025-2).
- scientific Carpenter, K. E. (org.) (2002). The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Vol. 3: Bony fishes part 2 (Opistognathidae to Molidae). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. Roma: FAO.Sciaenidae chapter (Chao, N. L.), cited by FishBase for the species.
- scientific Szpilman, M. (2000). Peixes marinhos do Brasil: guia prático de identificação. Rio de Janeiro: Instituto Ecológico Aqualung. 288 p.Printed work; the URL is the bibliographic record on FishBase, which cites this work for the species.
- scientific Menezes, N. A.; Buckup, P. A.; Figueiredo, J. L.; Moura, R. L. (orgs.) (2003). Catálogo das espécies de peixes marinhos do Brasil. São Paulo: Museu de Zoologia da USP. 160 p.List of marine species recorded in Brazil. Printed work; the URL is the bibliographic record in FishBase, which cites this work for the species.
similar species
where each number comes from
The weather comes from three independent global models, cross-checked hour by hour: when they agree, confidence goes up; when they diverge, the band between them shows on the chart. Beyond 16 days, we use the GEFS ensemble of 31 simulations: if 20 of the 31 predict rain, the chance of rain is 65%. Sun and moon are calculated astronomically, with no uncertainty.
The index adds up, weighted for each species: time of day (species curve anchored to real sunrise and sunset), moon (transits, rise and set, phase), pressure (3 h trend and 24 h swing), water temperature (in rivers, estimated from air temperature; at sea, estimated by an ocean model), wind, rain, clouds, tide and the month in the species' cycle.
sources for this lookup
how accurate the forecast is
Accuracy measured in the reference project (4 regions, 93 days, forecast vs. observed): maximum temperature is off by 0.6 °C on average the next day and 1.7 °C at 7 days; rain of 5 mm or more is detected 76% of the time the next day and 57% at 7 days. Detection isn't everything: the false alarm rate isn't published here yet, and 93 days in 4 regions is still a small sample. We now also measure every day, at the app's destinations: