five-rayed sanddab
Citharichthys mariajorisae van der Heiden & Mussot-Pérez, 1995
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.
Open encyclopedia reference
Citharichthys mariajorisae, the five-rayed sanddab, is a species of flatfish in the large-tooth flounder family Paralichthyidae. It is native to the eastern Pacific Ocean, in tropical waters ranging from the Gulf of California in the north to the Bay of Panama in the south. It is a demersal marine fish, inhabiting the sandy bottoms of shallow coastal waters at a depth between 10 and 45 metres (33 and 148 ft).
Like the rest of the large-tooth flounders, it has both eyes on the left side of its head. It grows to a maximum length of 12.4 centimetres (4.9 in). It is brownish or grey in color, mottled with darker patches. Its common name is derived from five or six pelvic-fin rays on the ocular side.
Citharichthys mariajorisae is a predator, feeding on benthic worms and crustaceans, as well as small fish.
Wikipedia contributors, Citharichthys mariajorisae; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:26:06.286718+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Citharichthys mariajorisae van der Heiden & Mussot-Pérez, 1995
- Name authority
- van der Heiden & Mussot-Pérez, 1995
- Common name
- five-rayed sanddab
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Pleuronectiformes
- Family
- Paralichthyidae
- Genus
- Citharichthys
- 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
- orderPleuronectiformes
- suborderPleuronectoidei
- familyParalichthyidae Regan, 1910
- genusCitharichthys Bleeker, 1862
- speciesCitharichthys mariajorisae van der Heiden & Mussot-Pérez, 1995
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Citharichthys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Gulf Stream flounderCitharichthys arctifrons Goode, 1880 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Citharichthys darwini Victor & Wellington, 2013 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Veracruz whiffCitharichthys abbotti Dawson, 1969 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Citharichthys amblybregmatus Gutherz & Blackman, 1970 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| spined whiffCitharichthys dinoceros Goode & Bean, 1886 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Citharichthys gnathus Hoshino & Amaoka, 1999 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| mimic sanddabCitharichthys gordae Beebe & Tee-Van, 1938 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| spotted whiffCitharichthys macrops Dresel, 1885 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pacific sanddabCitharichthys sordidus (Girard, 1854) | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| speckled sanddabCitharichthys stigmaeus Jordan & Gilbert, 1882 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| voodoo whiffCitharichthys uhleri Jordan, 1889 | ParalichthyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
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.
- Van der Heiden, A. M., Mussot-Pérez, S., & Mussot-Perez, S. (1995). Citharichthys mariajorisae, a New Flatfish from the Shallow Coastal Waters of the Eastern Tropical Pacific (Pleuronectiformes: Paralichthyidae). Copeia, 1995. https://doi.org/10.2307/1446908 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. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
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:VM6Q. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.