lafayette
Leiostomus xanthurus Lacepède, 1802
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Spot ( Leiostomus xanthurus )
NOAA's Fisheries Collection; Collection of Brandi Noble · Public domain · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 320 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The spot (Leiostomus xanthurus), also known commonly as the spot croaker, Norfolk spot and the Virginia spot, is a species of small short-lived saltwater fish in the family Sciaenidae. The species inhabits estuary and coastal waters from Massachusetts to Texas, and derives its name from the prominent dark spot behind each gill. It is the only species in the genus Leiostomus. Spot are frequently caught by recreational anglers and are good to eat.
Wikipedia contributors, Spot (fish); see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:37:25.871979+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Leiostomus xanthurus Lacepède, 1802
- Name authority
- Lacepède, 1802
- Common name
- lafayette
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Family
- Sciaenidae
- Genus
- Leiostomus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- familySciaenidae Cuvier, 1829
- genusLeiostomus Lacepède, 1802
- speciesLeiostomus xanthurus Lacepède, 1802
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Leiostomus humeralis Cuvier, 1830 Cuvier, 1830 | synonym |
| Sciaena multifasciata Lesueur, 1822 Lesueur, 1822 | synonym |
| Mugil obliquus Mitchill, 1814 Mitchill, 1814 | synonym |
| Perca edentula Bosc, 1802 Bosc, 1802 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Lacepède, B. G. E. (1802). Histoire naturelle des poissons: IV. Chez Plassan: Paris, France, v. 4: i–xliv + 1–728, Pl. 1–16. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3T2K3. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.