Description: A medium-sized tuna. Body fusiform, elongate and rounded. Two dorsal fins separated by a small interspace. Second dorsal fin and anal fin followed by finlets. Pelvic fins short. Two flaps (interpelvic processes) between the pelvic fins. Body scaleless except for a corselet of specialized scales in the pectoral region and lateral line. A strong median keel on each side of the caudal peduncle between two smaller keels. Caudal fin strongly forked. Back dark purplish-blue, lower sides and belly silvery, with 4 to 6 conspicuous longitudinal dark bands.
Global Distribution: Cosmopolitan in tropical and warm-temperate waters. Absent from the Black Sea. View Map
BIOLOGICAL FEATURES
Size: Maximum length 110 cm (fork length); common length 80.0 cm (FL); maximum published weight 34.5 kg.
Reproduction: Spawns throughout the year in the tropics; batch spawners. Eggs and larvae are pelagic.
Maturity: 40.0 cm, range 40 - 45 cm.
Behavioural ecology: Exhibit a strong tendency to school in surface waters with birds, drifting objects, sharks, whales and may show a characteristic behavior like jumping, feeding, foaming, etc.
Population structure & migrations: Highly migratory species. In Madeira it can be found year-round but is more common in the summer.
ECOLOGICAL FEATURES
Depth range: FishBase: 0 - 260 m.
Habitat: Pelagic, oceanic. Found in offshore waters with surface temperatures of 15°C to 30°C.
Feeding habits: Feeds on fishes, crustaceans, and molluscs. Cannibalism is common.
Trophic level: FishBase: 3.8
FISHERIES
Commercial interest: Important commercial species in Madeira. Usually marketed dried-salted, but can also be consumed fresh.
Conservation status: Global: Least concern.
Europe: Least concern.
Nutritional information & food safety: Health warning: reports of ciguatera poisoning in some areas.
REFERENCES
Carpenter K.E., ed. (2002). The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Volume 3: Bony fishes part 2 (Opistognathidae to Molidae), sea turtles and marine mammals. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes and American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special Publication No. 5. FAO, Rome, pp. 1375-2127.
Collette B.B., Nauen C.E. (1983). FAO Species Catalogue Vol. 2. Scombrids of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of tunas, mackerels, bonitos and related species known to date. FAO Fisheries Synopses, 125 vol.2, 137 pp.
González J., Hernández C., Marrero P., Rapp E. (2000). Peces de Canarias: GuÃa Submarina (5th edition). Francisco Lemus Editor, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canarias, Spain, 235 pp.
Hureau J.-C., ed. (1984-1985). Fishes of the North-Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO. Accessed through: Marine Species Identification Portal. World Wide Web electronic publication. http://species-identification.org (2014).
IUCN (2014). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org
Nieto A., Ralph G.M., Comeros-Raynal M.T., Kemp J., GarcÃa Criado M., Allen D.J., Dulvy N.K., Walls R.H.L., Russell B., Pollard D., GarcÃa S., Craig M., Collette B.B., Pollom R., Biscoito M., Labbish Chao N., Abella A., Afonso P., Ãlvarez H., Carpenter K.E., Clò S., Cook R., Costa M.J., Delgado J., Dureuil M., Ellis J.R., Farrell E.D., Fernandes P., Florin A-B., Fordham S., Fowle, S., Gil de Sola L., Gil Herrera J., Goodpaster A., Harvey M., Heessen H., Herler J., Jung A., Karmovskaya E., Keskin C., Knudsen S.W., Kobyliansky S., KovaÄić M., Lawson J.M., Lorance P., McCully Phillips S., Munroe T., Nedreaas K., Nielsen J., Papaconstantinou C., Polidoro B., Pollock C.M., Rijnsdorp A.D., Sayer C., Scott J., Serena F., Smith-Vaniz W.F., Soldo A., Stump E., Williams J.T. (2015). Europen Red List of Marine Fishes. IUCN and European Union, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 90 pp.
