Porkfish (Anisotremus virginicus)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Eupercaria incertae sedis · Family: Haemulidae · Genus: Anisotremus.

Accepted name: Anisotremus virginicus · Authority: (Linnaeus, 1758) · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 279625.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Sparus virginicus Linnaeus, 1758.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=279625 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Anisotremus virginicus. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 40.599998474121094 cm · Common length: 25 cm · Depth range: 2–70 m · Habitat zone: reef-associated · Body shape: short and / or deep · Vulnerability index: 30.6 of 100 · Fishery importance: minor commercial · Aquarium trade: public aquariums.

FishBase notes: Maximum depth from Ref. 126840. Inhabits reefs and rocky bottoms. Feeds at night on mollusks, echinoderms, annelids, and crustaceans (Ref. 3798). Young pick parasites from the bodies of larger fishes (Ref. 5521). Young are popular aquarium fish (Ref. 7251). Marketed fresh (Ref. 3798). Has been reared in captivity (Ref. 35420).

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 1124) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Anisotremus-virginicus.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

45,374 georeferenced occurrence records for Anisotremus virginicus are published through GBIF from 33 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 126 distinct locations from a sample of 3,000 records, omitting 45 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: United States of America (33,073); Brazil (7,694); Puerto Rico (2,761); Mexico (817); Colombia (201).

The full country table, WoRMS marine regions and the sampling notes are on this species' Distribution page.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 2382596) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=2382596&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=279625 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Anisotremus virginicus (Linnaeus, 1758) as Least Concern (code LC). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 194409) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/194409/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 2382596) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/2382596/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

Anisotremus virginicus has a deep, compressed body with a very high back and a short, blunt head. The mouth is positioned low on the head, it is horizontal with fleshy lips and the jaws are equipped with bands of teeth on both jaws. The outer band of teeth is conical in shape. The flanks are marked with alternating yellow and silver stripes. A black bar runs diagonally from over the eye to the upper lip and a second, vertical black bar runs from the front of the dorsal fin to the base of the pectoral fin. They have yellow fins; the caudal fin is deeply forked. The juveniles do not have the two black bars and have two black stripes that run horizontally along the middle of the flanks and a black blotch close to the caudal fin base, and the head is vivid yellow. The dorsal fin contains 12 spines and 16–18 soft rays, while the anal fin contains three spines and 9 soft rays. This species attains a maximum total length of 40.6 cm, although 25 cm is more typical, and the maximum published weight is 930 g.

Anisotremus virginicus is found in the western Atlantic Ocean from northeastern Florida south along its Atlantic coast to the Bahamas, then westwards into the Gulf of Mexico from the Florida Keys north to New Port Richey on Florida's Gulf Coast. Within the gulf, it is found at the Flower Garden Banks and on the Mexican coast as far south as the northern Yucatan Peninsula and also northwestern Cuba. It then ranges southwards throughout the Caribbean Sea, to South America as far south as Rio de Janeiro. It can also be found at Fernando de Noronha and Atoll das Rocas. It is found at Bermuda, where it was introduced.

Anisotremus virginicus inhabits reefs and areas of rock substrate in shallow inshore waters at depths of 2.0 - 20 m. The juveniles are found in beds of sea grass. It is a nocturnal species, which frequently moves around in large schools, occasionally swimming with white grunts. This species can produce a grunting sound, as can all the grunts, by grinding its teeth together. It feeds mainly on benthic invertebrates such as molluscs, crustaceans, echinoderms, polychaetes, and annelids. The juveniles act as cleaner fish, picking parasites from the skin and scales of other species of fish.

Anisotremus virginicus was first formally described in 1758 as Sparus virginicus by Linnaeus, with the type locality given as South America. When American ichthyologist Theodore Nicholas Gill created the genus Anisotremus, he renamed Sparus virginicus and made it the type species.

Anisotremus virginicus is of minor importance to commercial fisheries and is caught using a variety of methods. It is considered a good sportfishing quarry and appears in the aquarium trade. The species has been bred in captivity.

Source: Wikipedia: Anisotremus virginicus — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anisotremus_virginicus (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

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