Fun Grunter Fish Facts For Kids
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The grunter fish is a benthic feeder that sifts the mud for small invertebrates. It is found in muddy or sandy substrates, often near seagrass beds.
It’s popularly known as the 'fish that grunts', but it actually makes a sound like pig snorts. All in all, there are 150 species of the grunter.
The fish species is a part of a large brood - with many subspecies like the javelin grunter (Pomadasys kaakan), sooty grunter (Hephaestus fuliginosus), the spotted javelin fish (Pomadasys commersonnii), and so on. While these fish thrive in coastal estuaries, they also have the innate ability to survive in freshwater.
Javelin grunter is a type of grunter that goes by many names like spotted javelin fish, yellow-finned javelin fish, and the barred javelin. They are prominently found in and around estuaries as well as harbors and shallow coastal waters.
They are considered to be overexploited in South Africa as an unfortunate result of excessive commercial fishing and estuarine degradation. The South African government has issued daily bag limits as well as a size limit regarding their commercial fishing.
If you liked what you read, you may want to read more such facts. For more relatable content, check out these olive flounder facts and Atlantic cod facts for kids.
Grunter Fish Interesting Facts
What type of animal is a grunter?
Grunter fish is a benthic creature that has several subspecies. There are 150 species of this fish belonging to the Haemulidae family. Spotted grunter, sooty grunter, javelin grunter are some of the popular species of grunter.
What class of animal does a grunter belong to?
The grunter fish species is a type of ray-finned fish that belongs to the Actinopterygii class.
How many grunter fish are there in the world?
The exact number of grunter fish living in the world has not been quantified.
Where does a grunter fish live?
The spotted grunter is primarily found in the shallow coastal waters of the Indian ocean. Their ecosystem goes along the South Western Cape up to Mozambique. Overall, the habitat of a spotted grunter fish goes from the eastern coast of Africa to the Arabian sea coast of India.
The sooty grunter is frequently seen all around northern Australia.
The javelin grunter is often located in the Indo-Pacific region.
What is a grunter fish's habitat?
Grunter fish lives in a variety of habitats. The spotted grunter fish is usually found in and around an estuary and soft sediments. The sooty grunter is an habitant of freshwater streams and creeks and the javelin grunter is known to be an inhabitant of coral reefs, and sandy shores.
Who do grunter fish live with?
Like most fish, grunts also live in groups or schools.
How long does a grunter fish live?
A grunter can live up to almost 15 years since they are slow-growing and only reach maturity towards the age of two or three years.
How do they reproduce?
The grunter, collectively as a species, reproduces externally through a distinct pairing during breeding. They also practice monogamy. They leave their eggs unguarded in open seas, and most spawning happens between the months of August and December. After spawning, the newly hatched larvae and the post-spawning adults move into the estuaries for nutrition and protection.
What is their conservation status?
The spotted grunter and western sooty grunter are classified as Least Concern. The javelin grunter is Not Evaluated in the IUCN Red List. However, in South Africa due to excessive commercial fishing, they are protected.
Grunter Fish Fun Facts
What do grunter fish look like?
The spotted grunter is a relatively large and plain fish to look at. It has a small mouth with thick lips and a pit on the chin.
Its dorsal fin has 10-11 spines while the anal fin has three spines. Its body is dark gray with a silvery-white underbelly, while the back and the sides have many small brown spots that do not extend to the head. It has a very long, sloping forehead and a body that narrows towards the tail.
The sooty grunter is a dark brownish-gray species that have golden stains throughout their sides.
The javelin grunter, on the other hand, has shiny golden-greenish slimy scales. They have a convex upper part and a flat head.
How cute are they?
Most of the grunts are actually quite plain and unpleasant to look at. However, some might find some of their subspecies attractive.
How do they communicate?
The grunt fish produces a grunting sound in their throats by grinding their jaws together
How big is a grunter fish?
Their size may vary with species. For example, a spotted grunter has an average length of 13- 15.3 in (33-39 cm). A sooty grunter can grow 9.8 in (25 cm) big and a javelin grunter is about 19.7-31.5 in (50-80 cm) long in size. They are smaller than a humphead wrasse.
How fast can a grunter fish swim?
The species as a whole swim at average speed. However, for the species that are associated with shallow water or estuary, their speed is known to be less.
How much does a grunter fish weigh?
A spotted grunter, on average, can weigh up to 20.9 lb (9.5 kg). A sooty grunter weighs around 13.7 lb (6.2 kg). And a javelin grunter weighs almost 13.2 lb (6 kg).
What are the male and female names of the species?
There are no separate names for the male and female fish.
What would you call a baby grunter fish?
A baby grunter is called a fry.
What do they eat?
Grunters, but especially spotted grunters have an unusual method of feeding. They use a type of pumping action from their large gill chambers ‘in reverse’ to create a jet of water through their mouths to remove small prey for feeding, from the mud banks.
These prey include small sand prawns, crabs mollusks as well as baits from fishermen. The sooty grunter's food includes plant roots, frogs, algae, shrimps, and crustaceans. The javelin grunter's diet mainly consists of crustaceans, fishes, and mollusks.
Are they dangerous?
These water species are not dangerous to humans.
Would they make a good pet?
Since they are marine water fish and thrive in their natural habitat, they would not be the ideal pet to keep at home.
Did you know…
They are named 'grunter' for their piglike grunts that they have the ability to produce with their throat teeth, also known as pharyngeal teeth.
The species have a strange behavioral trait in which two fish approach and kiss - it is not known if this behavior is aggressive or friendly.
Can you eat grunter fish?
Yes, there are many recipes online and it tastes good to eat according to many and you can fish a grunter near their natural habitat. However, spotted grunter fish are protected in South Africa, and can only be fished by recreational fishers who cannot catch them for commercial sale.
Daily bag limits, as well as a minimum size limit (length of 15.7 in (40 cm)), are posed to prevent from being over caught.
They are caught using fresh strip baits. Apart from them, javelin grunter is caught mainly for food since it is one the most delicious species of fish as its meat is soft and delectable.
Do grunter fish have teeth?
Most grunts are snapper-like but lack canine teeth.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these fluke fish fun facts and Hampala barb fun facts for kids pages.
You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable fishing coloring pages.
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Bachelor of Arts specializing in Journalism and Mass Communication, Postgraduate Diploma in Sports Management
Moumita DuttaBachelor of Arts specializing in Journalism and Mass Communication, Postgraduate Diploma in Sports Management
A content writer and editor with a passion for sports, Moumita has honed her skills in producing compelling match reports and stories about sporting heroes. She holds a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management, Calcutta University, alongside a postgraduate diploma in Sports Management.
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