Latin name

Seriola rivoliana

Other names

Amberjack, greater amberjack, longfin yellowtail; Afrikaans: langvin-geelstert; Arabic: gazala; French: seriole limon; Hawaiian: kahala; Japanese: songoro, hirenaga-kanpachi; Malay/Indonesian: chermin, aji-aji; Portuguese: arabaiana, xaréu limao; Samoan: tavai, tafala, palukata; Spanish: pez limon, palometa, medregal, huayaipe, fortuno, cavallas.

Identification

The body and fins may be a uniform dark brown, dark bluish-green, bronze, or metallic gray, while the undersides and belly are a lighter shade, sometimes with a lavender or brassy cast. A diagonal black stripe usually runs from the lips through each eye to the upper part of the back at the beginning of the dorsal fin. Young fish sometimes have five or six stripes. The anterior blades of the dorsal and anal fins are tall, elongated, and have deeply sickle-shaped outer edges. The first dorsal fin has seven spines. Similar in appearance to the large amberjack, but has a deeper, more flattened body and a more pointed head. The large amberjack has a more elongated body, a lighter stripe, and a shorter anterior dorsal fin.

Distribution

Occurs worldwide, in the eastern Pacific Ocean from Southern California to Peru, including the Gulf of California and the Galápagos Islands. In the western Atlantic Ocean, it occurs from Cape Cod to northern Argentina.

Habitat

A warm-water species, it prefers deep, open water and lives near the outer slopes of reefs, but rarely swims beyond them. Young fish are often associated with floating objects and sargassum. It sometimes moves alone and sometimes in whole flocks at depths of 50 to 180 feet.

Size

A large species, it grows up to 3 feet in the Atlantic, although it is usually 1 to 2 feet long and weighs less than 20 pounds. In the Pacific, it grows to nearly 5 feet and 130 pounds, but normally weighs 50-60 pounds. In the Atlantic, the world record in tackle is considered a 78-pound fish caught off Bermuda in 1990, and in the Pacific, the world record in tackle is considered a 132-pound fish caught off the coast of Baja California in 1964.

Life history and Behavior

It spawns in the sea from spring until the fall.

Food and feeding habits

Feeds mainly on fish, but also invertebrates.

Reproduction

No information