Field Identification of Major Demersal TeleostFish Species along the Indian Coast

Based on their vertical distribution, fishes are broadly classified as pelagic or demersal. Species those are distributed from the seafloor to a 5 m depth above, are called demersal and those distributed from a depth of 5 m above the seafloor to the sea surface are called pelagic. The term demersal originates from the Latin word demergere, which means to sink. The demersal fish resources include the elasmobranchs, major perches, catfishes, threadfin breams, silverbellies, sciaenids, lizardfishes, pomfrets, bulls eye, flatfishes, goatfish and white fish. This chapter deals with identification of the major demersal teleost fish species.