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Sciaenidae, the drums, is a family of ray-finned fishes in the order Acanthuriformes. They are also known as croakers in reference to how they croak. The family has 298 species in 67 genera.
Sciaenidae, the drums, is a family of ray-finned fishes in the order Acanthuriformes. They are also known as croakers in reference to how they croak. The family has 298 species in 67 genera.
Sciaenidae was first made in 1829 by Georges Cuvier. Fishes of the World classifies the family in the suborder Sciaenoidei, while others classify them within the series Eupercaria. Fishes of the World, FishBase and Catalog of Fishes do not place subfamilies in this family.
The following genera are classified within the family Sciaenidae:
Drums are a delicious food and excellent game fish. Some species are very important, for example, Larimichthys polyactis, which had reported landings of 218,000–407,000 in 2000–2009. They are managed in the USA to ensure that they're sustainably harvested.
One of the most famous traits of the Sciaenidae are their "croaking" sound. It is used as a mating call in some species. This is why they are sometimes called "croakers".
The croaking mechanism is not just for mating calls. It is also used to communicate with another drum. The croaking mechanism helps dolphins to easily find a group of sciaenids.
