Flathead grey mullet

Flathead grey mullet
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Mugiliformes
Family: Mugilidae
Genus: Mugil
Species:
M. cephalus
Binomial name
Mugil cephalus
Synonyms
  • Mugil albula Linnaeus, 1766
  • Mugil our Forsskål, 1775
  • Mugil tang Bloch, 1794
  • Mugil provensalis Risso, 1810
  • Mugil lineatus Valenciennes, 1836
  • Mugil cephalotus Valenciennes, 1836
  • Mugil japonicus Temminck & Schlegel, 1845
  • Mugil rammelsbergii Tschudi, 1846
  • Mugil vulpinus Nardo, 1847
  • Mugil dobula Günther, 1861
  • Mugil ashanteensis Bleeker, 1863
  • Myxus superficialis Klunzinger, 1870
  • Mugil gelatinosus Klunzinger, 1872
  • Myxus caecutiens Günther, 1876
  • Mugil mexicanus Steindachner, 1876
  • Mugil grandis Castelnau, 1879
  • Mugil muelleri Klunzinger, 1879

The flathead grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) is an important food fish species in the mullet family Mugilidae. It is found in coastal tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Its length is typically 30 to 75 centimetres (12 to 30 in). It is known with numerous English names, including the flathead mullet, striped mullet (US, American Fisheries Society name), black mullet, bully mullet, common mullet, grey mullet, sea mullet and mullet, among others.

The flathead grey mullet is a mainly diurnal coastal species that often enters estuaries and rivers. It usually schools over sand or mud bottoms, feeding on zooplankton, dead plant matter, microalgae and detritus. The adult fish normally feed on algae in fresh water. The species is euryhaline, meaning that the fish can acclimate to different levels of salinity.

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