List of animals of Long Island Sound
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Long Island Sound is a large marine estuary in the Northeastern United States. It forms the maritime border between the states of New York and Connecticut. It is diverse and serves as a breeding ground to many different types of marine animal species; the following is a list of said species by scientific and/or common name. Marine mammals are excluded; see List of mammals of New York for the corresponding species.
- Clathria prolifera (red beard sponge)
- Cliona celata (boring sponge)[1]
- Halichondria panicea (breadcrumb sponge)
- Halichondria bowerbanki (yellow sun sponge)
- Haliclona loosanoffi (erect sponge)
- Haliclona oculata (mermaid's glove)
- Isodictya palmata (finger sponge)
- Polymastia robusta
Comb jellies (Ctenophora)
[edit]- Pleurobrachia pileus (sea gooseberry)
- Aurelia aurita (moon jelly)
- Chrysaora quinquecirrha (Atlantic sea nettle)
- Cyanea capillata (lion's mane jellyfish)
- Physalia physalis (Portuguese man o'war)
Corals (Cnidaria: Alcyonacea and Scleractinia)
[edit]- Alcyonium digitatum (dead man's fingers coral)
- Astrangia poculata (northern star coral)
Sea anemones (Cnidaria: Actiniaria)
[edit]- Ceriantheopsis americana (American striped burrowing anemone; invasive species)
- Cerianthus borealis (northern burrowing anemone)
- Diadumene leucolena (ghost anemone)
- Diadumene lineata (orange-striped green anemone)
- Fagesia lineata (lined anemone)
- Metridium senile (frilled anemone)
- Urticina felina (northern red anemone)
Crustaceans (Arthropoda: Crustacea)
[edit]- Callinectes sapidus (Atlantic blue crab)
- Carcinus maenas (European green crab; invasive species)
- Ovalipes ocellatus (lady crab)
- Cancer irroratus (Atlantic rock crab)
- Cancer borealis (Jonah crab)
- Libinia emarginata (common spider crab)
- Libinia dubia (longnose spider crab)
- Pelia mutica (cryptic teardrop crab)
- Sesarma reticulatum (marsh crab)
- Hemigrapsus sanguineus (Asian shore crab; invasive species)
- Uca pugnax (Atlantic marsh fiddler crab)
- Uca pugilator (Atlantic sand fiddler crab)
Other decapods
[edit]- Homarus americanus (American lobster)
- Pagurus longicarpus (long-wrist hermit crab)
- Pagurus pollicaris (flatclaw hermit crab)
- Crangon septemspinosa (seven-spined sand shrimp)
- Palaemonetes pugio (daggerblade grass shrimp)
- Gilvossius setimanus (ghost shrimp)
- Upogebia affinis (coastal mud shrimp)
Mantis shrimp (Stomatopoda)
[edit]- Squilla empusa (Atlantic mantis shrimp)
Horseshoe crabs (Arthropoda: Xiphosura)
[edit]- Limulus polyphemus (Atlantic horseshoe crab)
Cephalopods (Mollusca: Cephalopoda)
[edit]- Illex illecebrosus (northern shortfin squid)
- Loligo pealei (longfin inshore squid)
Gastropods (Mollusca: Gastropoda)
[edit]This group includes filter feeders, omnivores, and predatory sea snails.
- Crepidula fornicata (common slipper shell snail)
- Crepidula plana (eastern white slipper shell)
- Euspira heros (northern moonsnail)
- Euspira triseriata (spotted moonsnail)
- Neverita duplicata (sharkeye moonsnail)[2]
- Littorina littorea (common periwinkle; invasive species)
- Littorina saxatilis (rough periwinkle)
Most neogastropods are predatory sea snails.
- Buccinum undatum (waved whelk)
- Busycon carica (knobbed whelk)
- Busycotypus canaliculatus (channeled whelk)
- Ilyanassa obsoleta (eastern mudsnail)
- Ilyanassa trivittata (threeline mudsnail)
- Astyris lunata (lunar dovesnail)
- Phrontis vibex (bruised nassa)
- Nucella lapillus (Atlantic dogwinkle)
- Urosalpinx cinerea (Atlantic oyster drill)
- Eupleura caudata (thick-lip drill)
- Kurtziella cerina (wax-colored mangelia)
- Cerithiopsis greenii (Green's cerith)
- Seila adamsii (Adam's cerith)
- Retilaskeya emersonii (awl cerith)
These filter feeders are either mobile or permanently attached to a substrate.
- Anadara transversa (transverse ark)
- Anadara ovalis (blood ark)
- Crassostrea virginica (eastern oyster)
- Ostrea edulis (European flat oyster)[3]
- Mytilus edulis (blue mussel)
- Geukensia demissa (ribbed mussel)
- Modiolus modiolus (northern horsemussel)
- Anomia simplex (jingle shell)
- Argopecten irradians (bay scallop)
- Placopecten magellanicus (sea scallop)
These filter feeders are mostly burrowers.
- Arctica islandica (ocean quahog)
- Mercenaria mercenaria (northern quahog / hardshell clam)
- Pitar morrhuanus (false quahog)
- Spisula solidissima (Atlantic surf clam)
- Mulinia lateralis (dwarf surf clam)
- Petricola pholadiformis (false angelwing)
- Mya arenaria (softshell clam)
- Ensis directus (Atlantic jackknife / razor clam)
- Astarte undata (wavy astarte)
- Astarte castanea (smooth astarte)
Echinoderms (Echinodermata)
[edit]Sea urchins (Echinoidea)
[edit]- Sand dollar
- Arbacia punctulata (Atlantic purple sea urchin)
- Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis (common green sea urchin)
Sea cucumbers (Holothuroidea)
[edit]- Sclerodactyla briareus (hairy sea cucumber)
Starfish (Asteroidea)
[edit]- Crossaster papposus (spiny sunstar)
- Solaster endeca (purple sunstar)
- Pteraster militaris (winged sea star)
- Hippasteria phrygiana (horse star)
- Leptasterias tenera (slender seastar)
- Asterias vulgaris (northern seastar)
- Asterias forbesi (common seastar)
- Henricia sanguinolenta (blood star)
Brittle stars (Ophiuroidea)
[edit]- Ophioderma brevispinum (shortspined brittlestar)
- Ophiopholis aculeata (daisy brittlestar)
- Aamphioplus abditus (burrowing brittlestar)
- Axiognathus squamata (little brittlestar)
- Gorgonocephalus arcticus (northern basketstar)
- Didemnum spp.
- Molgula manhattensis (sea grape)
- Styela clava (Asian stalked tunicate)
- Botryllus schlosseri (golden star tunicate)
- Botrylloides violaceus (compound tunicate)
Cartilaginous fish (Chordata: Chondrichthyes)
[edit]Sharks (Selachimorpha)
[edit]Resident sharks
[edit]- Carcharhinus leucas (bull shark)
- Carcharhinus plumbeus (sandbar shark)
- Mustelus canis (dusky smoothhound shark / smooth dogfish)
- Odontaspis taurus (sand tiger shark)
- Squalus acanthias (spiny dogfish)
Vagrant sharks
[edit]- Carcharhinus obscurus (dusky shark)
- Prionace glauca (blue shark)
- Sphyrna zygaena (smooth hammerhead shark)
- Alopias vulpinus (common thresher shark)
- Carcharodon carcharias (great white shark)
- Dasyatis centroura (roughtail stingray)
- Raja eglanteria (clearnose skate)
- Raja erinacea (little skate)
- Dipturus laevis (barndoor skate)
- Leucoraja ocellata (winter skate)
- Torpedo nobiliana (Atlantic torpedo)
- Rhinoptera bonasus (cownose ray)
Bony fish (Chordata: Osteichthyes)
[edit]Eels (Anguilliformes)
[edit]- Anguilla rostrata (American eel)
- Enchelyopus cimbrius (four-bearded rockling)
- Microgadus tomcod (Atlantic tomcod)
- Urophycis chuss (red hake)
Seahorses and pipefishes (Syngnathiformes)
[edit]- Hippocampus erectus (northern lined seahorse)
- Syngnathus fuscus (northern pipefish)
Jacks (Carangiformes: Carangidae)
[edit]- Caranx hippos (crevalle jack, jack crevalle, common jack)
- Caranx crysos (blue runner, hardnose)
- Carangoides bartholomaei (yellow jack, coolihoo)
- Chloroscombrus chrysurus (Atlantic bumper)
Flatfish (Pleuronectiformes)
[edit]- Etropus microstomus (smallmouth flounder)
- Paralichthys dentatus (fluke)
- Pleuronectes ferruginea (yellowtail flounder)
- Pseudopleuronectes americanus (winter flounder)
- Scophthalmus aquosus (windowpane flounder)
- Trinectes maculatus (hogchoker)
- Hemitripterus americanus (Atlantic sea raven)
- Myoxocephalus aenaeus (grubby sculpin)
- Myoxocephalus octodecemspinosus (longhorn sculpin)
- Prionotus carolinus (northern sea robin)
- Prionotus evolans (striped sea robin)
- Pterois volitans (red lionfish; invasive species)
- Anarhichas lupus (Atlantic wolffish)
Wrasses (Labriformes: Labridae)
[edit]- Tautoga onitis (blackfish, tautog)
- Tautogolabrus adspersus (cunner wrasse, bergall)
Drums (Sciaenidae)
[edit]- Cynoscion regalis (weakfish, seatrout)
- Menticirrhus saxatilis (northern kingfish, northern kingcroaker, whiting)
- Sciaenops ocellatus (red drum, redfish, puppy drum, channel bass, red, spottail bass)
- Pogonias cromis (black drum, big ugly, drum, drummer)
- Leiostomus xanthurus (spot, spot croaker)
- Micropogonias undulatus (Atlantic croaker)
Other Perciformes
[edit]- Centropristis striata (black sea bass)
- Morone saxatilis (striped bass)
- Pholis gunnellus (rock gunnel)
- Pomatomus saltatrix (bluefish)
- Stenotomus chrysops (scup)
- Ulvaria subbifurcata (radiated shanny)
- Archosargus probatocephalus (sheephead)
Anglerfish (Lophiiformes)
[edit]- Dibranchus Atlanticus (Atlantic batfish)
- Lophius americanus (American anglerfish)
- Chaetodipterus faber (Atlantic spadefish)
All of the animals in this category are summer visitors, who migrate northwards from warmer waters in the south.
- Balistes capriscus (gray triggerfish)
- Chilomycterus schoepfii (striped burrfish)
- Mola mola (ocean sunfish)
- Sphoeroides maculatus (northern pufferfish)
- Stephanolepis hispidus (planehead filefish)
Miscellaneous Percomorpha
[edit]- Ammodytes americanus (American sand lance)
- Apeltes quadracus (four-spined stickleback; found in fresh and brackish water)
- Fundulus majalis (striped killifish)
- Menidia menidia (Atlantic silverside)
- Opsanus tau (oyster toadfish)
- Peprilus triacanthus (Atlantic butterfish, American butterfish)
- Selene vomer (lookdown)
Gulf Stream strays
[edit]Mainly all the animals in this category are juveniles carried via the Gulf Stream to the sound and end up dying when the water temperature cools.
- Balistes vetula (queen triggerfish)
- Aluterus scriptus (scrawled filefish)
- Acanthostracion quadricornis (scrawled cowfish)
- Histrio histrio (sargassum fish)
- Megalops atlanticus (Atlantic tarpon)
- Scorpaena plumieri (spotted scorpionfish)
- Pomacanthus paru (French angelfish)
- Holacanthus bermudensis (Bermuda blue angelfish)
- Hyporthodus niveatus (snowy grouper)
- Fistularia tabacaria (bluespotted cornetfish)
- Chaetodon ocellatus (spotfin butterflyfish)
References
[edit]- ^ Nicol, William L.; Reisman, Howard M. (1976). "Ecology of the Boring Sponge (Cliona celata) at Gardiner's Island, New York". Chesapeake Science. 17 (1): 1. Bibcode:1976CpkSc..17....1N. doi:10.2307/1350571. ISSN 0009-3262. JSTOR 1350571.
- ^ "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Neverita duplicata (Say, 1822)".
- ^ "Connecticut Sea Grant | UConn". seagrant.uconn.edu. Archived from the original on 2016-11-03. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
Further reading
[edit]- Lynch, Patrick (2017). A Field Guide to Long Island Sound: Coastal Habitats, Plant Life, Fish, Seabirds, Marine Mammals, and Other Wildlife. Connecticut: Yale University Press. pp. All. ISBN 978-0300220353.
- Weiss, Howard (1995). Marine Animals of Southern New England and New York. Connecticut: Bulletin. pp. All. ISBN 0-942081-06-4.
- "NOAA Fish Watch". NOAA Fish Watch.
- "Fish". ARKIVE. Archived from the original on 2016-02-05.
