Common names: bonefish (English), macabí (Espanol), zorro (Espanol)
 
Albula esuncula (Garman, 1899)


Eastern Pacific bonefish


Elongate, fusiform, slightly compressed body; head conical, snout overhanging mouth; mouth short, not reaching under front of eye; very small teeth in bands at front of jaws, patches of small molariform teeth on the roof and floor of the mouth; fins without spines; one short dorsal fin, 19 (18-19) rays, at midbody; pectoral fins low on the body; pelvic fins under the abdomen, well behind pectorals, under rear half of dorsal base anal short, 9 rays, well behind dorsal;  dorsal and anal fins without a filamentous ray; tail fin deeply forked; scales moderate sized, smooth 67-70 (62-72).

Silvery, throat and belly creamy white, a blackish spot at tip of snout.

Size: attains at least 70 cm.

Typically found on sandy substrata, sometimes coming into very shallow water on sand flats.

Depth: 0-10 m?

Southern California to Chile, the Galapagos.

Frequently identified as A. vulpes, an Atlantic species. Previously identified as A. neoguinaica (a synonym of the Indo-central Pacific species A. forsteri); however, genetic data indicate the eastern Pacific form is a separate species (Colborn et al, 2001), for which A. esuncula is the oldest name. Note: the population from California and the Gulf of California likely is an undescribed species distinct from E. esuncula (E Pfeiler, personal communication, 2006).