{{Short description|Species of fish}} {{Speciesbox | image = Dentex dentex Canary.jpg | image_caption = Common dentex off Canary islands (Spain) | status = VU | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name = iucn>{{cite iucn |author=Carpenter, K.E. |author-link=Kent E. Carpenter |author2=Russell, B. |name-list-style=& |year=2014 |title=''Dentex dentex'' |article-number=e.T170245A1300534 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T170245A1300534.en |access-date=16 January 2024}}</ref> | taxon = Dentex dentex | authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]]) | synonyms = {{specieslist |Dentex vulgaris | [[Achille Valenciennes|Valenciennes]], 1830 |Sparus dentex | Linnaeus, 1758 }} |synonyms_ref = <ref name = Fishbase>{{FishBase|Dentex|dentex|month=October|year=2023}}</ref> | range_map = Dentex dentex mapa.svg | range_map_caption = Distribution map }}
The '''common dentex''' ('''''Dentex dentex''''') is a species of marine [[ray-finned fish]] belonging to the [[Family (taxonomy)|family]] [[Sparidae]], which includes the seabreams and porgies. This species is found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. It is a highly valued food fish and is an important target species for fisheries and the population has shown large declines leading the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature]] to classify its conservation status as Vulnerable.
==Taxonomy== The common dentex was first formally [[Species description|described]] as ''Sparus dentex'' by [[Carl Linnaeus]] in the 10th edition of his ''[[Systema Naturae]]''. Linnaeus gave [[Type locality (biology)|type locality]] as the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.<ref name = CofF>{{Cof genus|genus=Dentex|access-date=16 January 2024}}</ref> In 1814 [[Georges Cuvier]] proposed the [[genus]] ''[[Dentex]]'' with ''Sparus dentex'' as the [[type species]] by absolute [[Tautonym|tautonymy]].<ref name = CofF2>{{Cof family|family=Sparidae|access-date=16 January 2024}}</ref> The genus ''Dentex'' is placed in the family Sparidae within the [[Order (biology)|order]] [[Spariformes]] by the 5th edition of ''[[Fishes of the World]]''.<ref name = Nelson5>{{cite book |author1=Nelson, J.S. |author1-link=Joseph S. Nelson |author2=Grande, T.C. |author3=Wilson, M.V.H. |year=2016 |title=Fishes of the World |edition=5th |publisher=[[John Wiley & Sons]] |place=Hoboken, NJ |pages=502–506 |isbn=978-1-118-34233-6 |lccn=2015037522 |oclc=951899884 |ol=25909650M |doi=10.1002/9781119174844}}</ref> Some authorities classify this genus in the subfamily Denticinae,<ref name = Parenti>{{cite journal |author= Parenti, P. |year=2019 |title=An annotated checklist of the fishes of the family Sparidae |journal=FishTaxa |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=47–98 |url= https://fishtaxa.com/menuscript/index.php/ft/article/view/49/52}}</ref> but the 5th edition of Fishes of the World does not recognise subfamilies within the Sparidae.<ref name = Nelson5/>
==Etymology== The common dentex has the [[Binomial nomenclature|binomial]] ''Dentex dentex'' which is a tautonym. ''Dentex'' means "with large teeth", an allusion to the rows of [[Canine (tooth)|canine]]-like teeth with the outermost row being the biggest and those in the front of the jaws being the most enlarged.<ref name = ETYFish>{{cite web |url=https://etyfish.org/spariformes/ |title=Order SPARIFORMES: Families LETHRINIDAE, NEMIPTERIDAE and SPARIDAE |work=The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database |access-date=16 January 2024 |date=22 December 2023 |publisher=Christopher Scharpf |archive-date=30 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030165034/https://etyfish.org/spariformes/ }}</ref>
== Description == The common dentex has the [[dorsal fin]] supported by 11 spines, the spines increase in length from the first to the fourth or fifth and then are roughly equal in length from spine 6 to 12, and 11 or 12 soft rays while the [[anal fin]] has 3 spines and between 7 and 9 soft rays supporting it.<ref name = FAO/> The body is oval shaped and compressed.<ref name = EU>{{cite web |url=https://fish-commercial-names.ec.europa.eu/fish-names/species/dentex-dentex_en |title=''Dentex dentex'' |access-date=16 January 2024 |publisher=European Union}}</ref> The dorsal profile of the head is smoothly rounded in adults but nearly straight in juveniles and is slightly convex in the largest specimens. The eyes are small and the space below them is wide. The cheeks are scaled as is the [[preoperculum]] except for its rear edge. The mouth is positioned low on the head and is slightly upward pointing. There are a number of rows of teeth, all are canine-like, with the most well-developed being in the front of the jaws. The young fishes are greyish with black spots on the back and upper flanks, changing to pink as they mature and the oldest specimens are bluish-grey with the dark spots fading and becoming more indistinct.<ref name = FAO>{{cite web |url=https://www.fao.org/figis/pdf/fishery/species/3182/en?title=FAO%20Fisheries%20%26%20Aquaculture%20-%20Species%20Fact%20Sheets%20-%20Dentex%20dentex%20(Linnaeus%2C%201758) |title=Species Fact Sheets ''Dentex dentex'' (Linnaeus, 1758) |access-date=16 January 2024 |publisher=FAO}}</ref> The maximum published [[total length]] of the common dentex is {{cvt|100|cm}}, although {{cvt|50|cm}} is more typical and the maximum published weight is {{cvt|14.3|kg}}.<ref name = Fishbase/>
== Distribution and habitat == The common dentex is found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean between the [[Bay of Biscay]] and [[Ras Nouadhibou]]in Mauritania, as well as the [[Canary Islands|Canaries]] and [[Madeira]]. It is rare as far north as the [[British Isles]]. It is also found throughout the Mediterranean Sea and into the western [[Black Sea]].<ref name = iucn/> This is a [[benthopelagic fish]] found at depths down to {{cvt|200|m}}, although commonest at {{cvt|15|to|50|m}}, over rocky substrates in inshore waters.<ref name = FAO/>
== Biology == The common dentex is an active predator, feeding on other fish, [[mollusca]] and [[cephalopod]]s. It is solitary for most of the year, but during reproduction it lives in groups for some weeks: fully-grown dentex stay together just two to three weeks during spring in the warmer water near the surface.<ref name=Fishbase/> A study off [[Mallorca]] found that males and females showed no differences in size, that spawning occurred in Spring and that both males and females reached sexual maturity at 2 to 4 years old.<ref name = Morales-Nin>{{cite journal |author=Beatriz Morales-Nin |author2=Joan Moranta |year=1997 |title=Life history and fishery of the common dentex (''Dentex dentex'') in Mallorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean) |journal=Fisheries Research |volume=30 |issue=1–2 |pages=67–76 |doi=10.1016/S0165-7836(96)00560-7}}</ref> Most common dentex are [[gonochoristic]] but hermaphroditism has been recorded.<ref name = FAO/> The adults tend to be solitary when not spawning while the juveniles aggregate in [[Shoaling and schooling|schools]].<ref name = Fishbase/>
==Fisheries and conservation== The common dentex is a highly valued food fish with a high commercial value and it has a life history which makes it vulnerable to [[overfishing]], i.e. it is long-lived, slow-growing and is large bodied. In the Mediterranean its abundance increases within [[marine protected area]]s but it is scarce outside of these areas. Landings of common dentex increased drastically in the 1970s and 1980s before falling by 30% in the 1990s. The catches in the Mediterranean and West Africa decreased by 37% and 70%, respectively. Overall the total population for this species has been estimated to have declined by over 30% over the three generations (equivalent to 36 years) up to 2009 and the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature|IUCN]] classifies this species as [[Vulnerable species|Vulnerable]].<ref name = iucn/> This species is caught using bottom [[Trawling|trawl]]s, [[longline fishing|line]]s, [[fish trap]]s and sometimes [[trammel net]]s.<ref name = FAO/> It is a popular sport fish for recreational anglers too. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Spain have reported producing this fish in [[aquaculture]] to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ([[FAO]]).<ref name = iucn/>
== References == {{Reflist}}
== Further reading == *{{cite book|last=Louisy|first=Patrick|editor=Trainito, Egidio|title=Guida all'identificazione dei pesci marini d'Europa e del Mediterraneo|location=Milan|publisher=Il Castello|year=2006|isbn=88-8039-472-X}}
==External links== * {{sealifephotos|273962}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q143503}}
[[Category:Dentex|Common dentex]] [[Category:Fish described in 1758]] [[Category:Animal taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]