What is "mojarra"

Cow-pilot \Cow"-pi`lot\ (kou"p[imac]`l[u^]t), n. (Zo["o]l.) A handsomely banded, coral-reef fish, of Florida and the West Indies ( Pomacentrus saxatilis); -- called also mojarra.

n. A perciform fish in the family (taxlink Gerreidae family noshow=1), often used as bait.

n. small silvery schooling fishes with protrusible mouths found in warm coastal waters

The mojarras are a family, Gerreidae, of fishes in the order Perciformes. The family includes about 53 species.

Mojarras are a common prey and bait fish in many parts of the Caribbean, including the South American coast and Caribbean islands as well as the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic coast of North America. These species tend to be difficult to identify in the field and often require microscopic examination. Most species exhibit a schooling behavior and tend to exploit the shallow water refugia associated with coastal areas presumably to avoid large-bodied predators, such as the lemon shark.

Mojarra is also commonly used in Latin American countries as a name for various species of the cichlid family, including tilapia.

Mojarra may refer to:

• Mojarras, the Gerreidae family of fishes in the order Perciformes.
• Mojarra, the reference implementation of JavaServer Faces.
• Mojarra is also slang for an illegal immigrant in the United States, mojado.