Longnose trevally
Encyclopedia
The longnose trevally, Carangoides chrysophrys (also known as the club-nosed trevally, grunting trevally, and dusky trevally), is a species
of inshore marine
fish
in the jack family, Carangidae
. The species is distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the Indian
and west Pacific Ocean
s from South Africa
to New Zealand
and Japan
, inhabiting coastal waters, especially reef
s, to a depth of 90 m. The longnose trevally is distinguished from similar species by a combination of a scaleless breast and the number of gill raker
s and fin rays. It is a moderately large fish, growing to a maximum known length of 72 cm and 4.35 kg. The longnose trevally is a predatory fish, consuming small fish, crustacean
s and molluscs. The species is of minor commercial importance
throughout its range, and is considered to be a good table fish
.
, a group of fish commonly called jacks and trevallies. Carangoides falls into the jack and horse mackerel family Carangidae
, itself part the order Perciformes
, in the suborder Percoidei
.
The species was first scientifically described by the French taxonomist Georges Cuvier
in 1833, based on the holotype
specimen collected from the waters of the Seychelles
. He named the new species Caranx chrysophrys, with the specific name meaning 'golden eyebrow' in Greek
. The generic position of the species was revised twice, being placed in Citula by William Ogilby
and finally into Carangoides by Ian Munro, where it has remained. The species has been independently described on a number of occasions, the first when Pieter Bleeker
identified a fish he believed was similar, but not the same as Carangoides chrysophrys, and named it Carangoides chrysophryoides. Other synonym
s include Caranx nigrescens, Caranx jayakari and Caranx typus. These are all considered to be junior synonyms under the ICZN
rules and are no longer used. The species has a number of common names, with the most often used names, 'longnose trevally' (or 'longnose kingfish') and 'club-nosed trevally' in reference to the snout profile of the fish. The names 'dusky trevally' and 'grunting trevally' are used for the fish in the United States
.
in weight. The dorsal profile is more convex than the ventral profile. One of the species major diagnostic characters is its snout shape, having a gently sloped dorsal profile from the nape
to near the snout, but becoming abruptly vertical just before the mouth cleft. Both of the jaw
s contain anteriorly widening bands of small villiform teeth, with larger individuals also having a number of conical outer teeth. There are two separate dorsal fin
s, the first consisting of 8 spines and the second of 1 spine and 18 to 20 soft rays. The anal fin comprises two detached anterior spines, followed by 1 spine and 14 to 17 soft rays. The lobes of both the soft anal and dorsal fin are falcate, with juveniles having the anteriormost rays extended into filaments. These are lost in adults, with the lobes becoming shorter than the head. The pectoral fins are long and falcate, not quite reaching the intersection of the arched and straight sections of the lateral line
. The lateral line is moderately curved anteriorly, with this section up to twice as long as the straight section, which has between 20 and 37 weak scutes present. The breast of the longnose trevally is scaleless, extending up to behind the pelvic fin origin and laterally to the pectoral fin base. There are 5 to 9 gill raker
s on the first arch and 15 to 18 on the second arch, and the species has 24 vertebrae.
The longnose trevally is generally silver in colour, with the body and head greenish blue above, becoming silvery with yellow-green reflections below. The operculum
has a small black blotch on the upper margin. The dorsal and anal fins range in colour from whitish to pale yellow to dusky, with the membranes of soft anal fin rays often having a white spot at the base. The caudal and pectoral fins are pale to dusky yellow. There are records of large adults exhibiting very dark head and fin colouration, nearing black. It has been suggested these fish are perhaps exhibiting mating or spawning
colouration.
and west Pacific Ocean
s, ranging from South Africa
and Madagascar
, north to the Red Sea
and Persian Gulf
, east to India
, South East Asia, Indonesia
, Japan
and to Fiji
. The longnose trevally has been reported from many west Pacific islands, indicating that it s widespread in this region. The species ranges as far north as the Okinawa, Japan and as far south as northern Australia
and New Zealand
.
The longnose trevally is an inshore fish, normally found on coastal reef
s and occasionally in large protected bay
s. It appears to be more tolerant of dirty, turbid waters than most of it relatives, but is not seen in estuaries. Juveniles reportedly inhabit shallow bays close to the coast, and are occasionally seen near beaches. Adults live in much deeper water, normally between 30 and 60 m, although have been recorded at depths of around 90 m.
of Australia. Here it was found its main prey were small fish, with considerable quantities of molluscs, brachyurans, and other crustacean
s also taken. In South Africa, the species is thought to prefer prawn
s as its major dietary component, with crab
s and small fish also taken. The longnose trevally has a fairly soft mouth, which may partly determine its diet. Very little is known of reproduction in the species, although juveniles have been recorded from shallow coastal bays.
The longnose trevally is of minor importance to fisheries throughout its range, taken by hook and line, bottom trawls, gill nets and various types of trap. It is usually sold fresh, and is often not distinguished from other species of carangid. The species is occasionally caught by boat angler
s, as well as beach fishermen on the South African coast. They take small baits and are considered good for eating.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of inshore marine
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
in the jack family, Carangidae
Carangidae
Carangidae is a family of fish which includes the jacks, pompanos, jack mackerels, and scads.They are marine fish found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans...
. The species is distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the Indian
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and west Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
s from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, inhabiting coastal waters, especially reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
s, to a depth of 90 m. The longnose trevally is distinguished from similar species by a combination of a scaleless breast and the number of gill raker
Gill raker
Gill rakers in fish are bony or cartilaginous processes that project from the branchial arch and are involved with filter feeding tiny prey. They are not to be confused with the gill filaments that compose the bony part of the gill. Rakers are usually present in two rows, projecting from both the...
s and fin rays. It is a moderately large fish, growing to a maximum known length of 72 cm and 4.35 kg. The longnose trevally is a predatory fish, consuming small fish, crustacean
Crustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
s and molluscs. The species is of minor commercial importance
Fishery
Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...
throughout its range, and is considered to be a good table fish
Fish (food)
Fish is a food consumed by many species, including humans. The word "fish" refers to both the animal and to the food prepared from it. Fish has been an important source of protein for humans throughout recorded history.-Terminology:...
.
Taxonomy and naming
The longnose trevally is classified within the genus CarangoidesCarangoides
Carangoides is a genus of tropical to subtropical marine fishes in the jack family, Carangidae. They are small to large sized, deep bodied fish characterised by a certain gill raker and jaw morphology, often appearing very similar to jacks in the genus Caranx...
, a group of fish commonly called jacks and trevallies. Carangoides falls into the jack and horse mackerel family Carangidae
Carangidae
Carangidae is a family of fish which includes the jacks, pompanos, jack mackerels, and scads.They are marine fish found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans...
, itself part the order Perciformes
Perciformes
The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, is one of the largest orders of vertebrates, containing about 40% of all bony fish. Perciformes means perch-like. They belong to the class of ray-finned fish and comprise over 7,000 species found in almost all aquatic environments...
, in the suborder Percoidei
Percoidei
Percoidei is one of eighteen suborders of bony fish in the order Perciformes. Many commercially harvested fish species are contained in this suborder, including the snappers, jacks, whitings, groupers, bass, perches and porgies.-Divisions:...
.
The species was first scientifically described by the French taxonomist Georges Cuvier
Georges Cuvier
Georges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
in 1833, based on the holotype
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
specimen collected from the waters of the Seychelles
Seychelles
Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....
. He named the new species Caranx chrysophrys, with the specific name meaning 'golden eyebrow' in Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
. The generic position of the species was revised twice, being placed in Citula by William Ogilby
William Ogilby
William Ogilby was an Irish barrister and naturalist.Ogilby was honorary secretary of the Zoological Society of London from 1839 to 1846....
and finally into Carangoides by Ian Munro, where it has remained. The species has been independently described on a number of occasions, the first when Pieter Bleeker
Pieter Bleeker
Pieter Bleeker was a Dutch medical doctor and ichthyologist, famous for his work on the fishes of East Asia – Atlas Ichthyologique des Orientales Neerlandaises – which was published 1862–1877....
identified a fish he believed was similar, but not the same as Carangoides chrysophrys, and named it Carangoides chrysophryoides. Other synonym
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
s include Caranx nigrescens, Caranx jayakari and Caranx typus. These are all considered to be junior synonyms under the ICZN
International Code of Zoological Nomenclature
The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature is a widely accepted convention in zoology that rules the formal scientific naming of organisms treated as animals...
rules and are no longer used. The species has a number of common names, with the most often used names, 'longnose trevally' (or 'longnose kingfish') and 'club-nosed trevally' in reference to the snout profile of the fish. The names 'dusky trevally' and 'grunting trevally' are used for the fish in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Description
The longnose trevally is similar to other jacks in its overall body profile, having a strongly compressed ovate shape as a juvenile, gradually becoming more oblong with age. It is a moderately large fish, recorded up to 72 cm in length and 4.35 kgKilogram
The kilogram or kilogramme , also known as the kilo, is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units and is defined as being equal to the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram , which is almost exactly equal to the mass of one liter of water...
in weight. The dorsal profile is more convex than the ventral profile. One of the species major diagnostic characters is its snout shape, having a gently sloped dorsal profile from the nape
Nape
The nape is the back of the neck. In technical anatomical/medical terminology, the nape is referred to by the word nucha, which also gives the adjective corresponding to "nape" in English, "nuchal"....
to near the snout, but becoming abruptly vertical just before the mouth cleft. Both of the jaw
Jaw
The jaw is any opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth, typically used for grasping and manipulating food. The term jaws is also broadly applied to the whole of the structures constituting the vault of the mouth and serving to open and close it and is part of the body plan of...
s contain anteriorly widening bands of small villiform teeth, with larger individuals also having a number of conical outer teeth. There are two separate dorsal fin
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...
s, the first consisting of 8 spines and the second of 1 spine and 18 to 20 soft rays. The anal fin comprises two detached anterior spines, followed by 1 spine and 14 to 17 soft rays. The lobes of both the soft anal and dorsal fin are falcate, with juveniles having the anteriormost rays extended into filaments. These are lost in adults, with the lobes becoming shorter than the head. The pectoral fins are long and falcate, not quite reaching the intersection of the arched and straight sections of the lateral line
Lateral line
The lateral line is a sense organ in aquatic organisms , used to detect movement and vibration in the surrounding water. Lateral lines are usually visible as faint lines running lengthwise down each side, from the vicinity of the gill covers to the base of the tail...
. The lateral line is moderately curved anteriorly, with this section up to twice as long as the straight section, which has between 20 and 37 weak scutes present. The breast of the longnose trevally is scaleless, extending up to behind the pelvic fin origin and laterally to the pectoral fin base. There are 5 to 9 gill raker
Gill raker
Gill rakers in fish are bony or cartilaginous processes that project from the branchial arch and are involved with filter feeding tiny prey. They are not to be confused with the gill filaments that compose the bony part of the gill. Rakers are usually present in two rows, projecting from both the...
s on the first arch and 15 to 18 on the second arch, and the species has 24 vertebrae.
The longnose trevally is generally silver in colour, with the body and head greenish blue above, becoming silvery with yellow-green reflections below. The operculum
Operculum (fish)
The operculum of a bony fish is the hard bony flap covering and protecting the gills. In most fish, the rear edge of the operculum roughly marks the division between the head and the body....
has a small black blotch on the upper margin. The dorsal and anal fins range in colour from whitish to pale yellow to dusky, with the membranes of soft anal fin rays often having a white spot at the base. The caudal and pectoral fins are pale to dusky yellow. There are records of large adults exhibiting very dark head and fin colouration, nearing black. It has been suggested these fish are perhaps exhibiting mating or spawning
Spawn (biology)
Spawn refers to the eggs and sperm released or deposited, usually into water, by aquatic animals. As a verb, spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, also called spawning...
colouration.
Distribution and habitat
The longnose trevally inhabits tropical to subtropical waters in the IndianIndian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and west Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
s, ranging from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
, north to the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
and Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
, east to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, South East Asia, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and to Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. The longnose trevally has been reported from many west Pacific islands, indicating that it s widespread in this region. The species ranges as far north as the Okinawa, Japan and as far south as northern Australia
Northern Australia
The term northern Australia is generally known to include two State and Territories, being Queensland and the Northern Territory . The part of Western Australia north of latitude 26° south—a definition widely used in law and State government policy—is also usually included...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
The longnose trevally is an inshore fish, normally found on coastal reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
s and occasionally in large protected bay
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...
s. It appears to be more tolerant of dirty, turbid waters than most of it relatives, but is not seen in estuaries. Juveniles reportedly inhabit shallow bays close to the coast, and are occasionally seen near beaches. Adults live in much deeper water, normally between 30 and 60 m, although have been recorded at depths of around 90 m.
Biology and fishery
The longnose trevally is an epibenthic predator, taking prey from the seafloor or just above it, with only one study ever to thoroughly record its diet, which was carried out in the Gulf of CarpentariaGulf of Carpentaria
The Gulf of Carpentaria is a large, shallow sea enclosed on three sides by northern Australia and bounded on the north by the Arafura Sea...
of Australia. Here it was found its main prey were small fish, with considerable quantities of molluscs, brachyurans, and other crustacean
Crustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
s also taken. In South Africa, the species is thought to prefer prawn
Prawn
Prawns are decapod crustaceans of the sub-order Dendrobranchiata. There are 540 extant species, in seven families, and a fossil record extending back to the Devonian...
s as its major dietary component, with crab
Crab
True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
s and small fish also taken. The longnose trevally has a fairly soft mouth, which may partly determine its diet. Very little is known of reproduction in the species, although juveniles have been recorded from shallow coastal bays.
The longnose trevally is of minor importance to fisheries throughout its range, taken by hook and line, bottom trawls, gill nets and various types of trap. It is usually sold fresh, and is often not distinguished from other species of carangid. The species is occasionally caught by boat angler
Angling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...
s, as well as beach fishermen on the South African coast. They take small baits and are considered good for eating.