Common Mojarra

A small, silvery, slab-sided fish common in the shallow waters and mangrove creeks of the UAE's Persian Gulf coast. A common bycatch species for shore anglers. Its protrusible mouth can extend downward to pick invertebrates from the sand.

Species Stats

Diet

Benthic invertebrates, worms, small crustaceans

Habitat

Shallow sandy and muddy coastal areas, estuaries, mangroves

Local Name (Arabic)

خربيط

Fun Facts

• 1

  The mouth can extend to nearly twice its resting length to vacuum up food from sandy bottoms.

• 2

  Often seen in large schools in very shallow water — even wading depth at low tide.

• 3

  An important food fish for larger predators and seabirds in UAE coastal ecosystems.

Found In