Yellowtail amberjack
Encyclopedia
The yellowtail amberjack or great amberjack, Seriola lalandi, is a large fish found in the Pacific and Indian oceans. It can be divided into three sub-species: The California yellowtail, Seriola lalandi dorsalis, the southern yellowtail, or in New Zealand and Australia the yellowtail kingfish or kingfish , Seriola lalandi lalandi, and the Asian yellowtail, Seriola lalandi aureovitta.
. This species is also known by several alternate names, such as amberjack, forktail, mossback, and white salmon.
, sardines, anchovies, squid
, and crab
are common in the yellowtail's diet. Often, the California Yellowtail are found in schools feeding at the surface of the water, as well as deeper down. This species prefers a water temperature of 21–22 °C (69.8–71.6 F), though have also been found in waters between 18–24 °C (64.4–75.2 F). Temperatures cooler than 18° would make the Yellowtail sink into deeper waters to conserve energy.
, San Clemente Island
, Santa Monica Bay
, as well as in Mexican
waters like Baja California Peninsula
´s and Sea of Cortes. Yellowtail populations have also been found in waters off South Africa
, the Walter Shoals, Amsterdam Island, Japan
, Australia
, New Zealand
, New Caledonia
, Hawaii
, Rapa
, Pitcairn Island, and Easter Island
. In the Eastern Pacific they can be found in waters off of British Columbia
, as well as from Canada to Chile They usually found around offshore islands, rocky reefs, and kelp beds.
and Mexico
, but has recently been overfished by Japanese fishing ships. Overfishing is becoming more of a problem as fishers move from areas in which this fish has become scarce to United States' waters in search of this fish. They spawn in warm waters 100–300 miles away from the Californian coast and return in May or June until September or December. They spawn slowly but may live up to and in excess of 30 years. One major spawning ground is at Cedros Island
. Spawning usually begins at three years old. Yellowtail are aggressive towards other fish. They will often feed more frequently during spawning, which makes an easy target for commercial fishers. They are currently not on the list of endangered animals.
, found off south eastern Australia
and the north east coast of the North Island
of New Zealand
. Very little is known of the kingfish's biology, including their habitat preferences throughout juvenile life stages, migration patterns and wild reproductive behaviour. Maximum length is often reported to reach up to 180 cm. Kingfish can be eaten in a variety of ways, including barbecuing, sashimi, and drying.
California yellowtail
The California Yellowtail is a species of ray-finned fish of the family CarangidaeCarangidae
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...
. This species is also known by several alternate names, such as amberjack, forktail, mossback, and white salmon.
Diet
The California Yellowtail is carnivorous and feeds on a variety of fish. MackerelMackerel
Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of fish, mostly, but not exclusively, from the family Scombridae. They may be found in all tropical and temperate seas. Most live offshore in the oceanic environment but a few, like the Spanish mackerel , enter bays and can be...
, sardines, anchovies, squid
Squid
Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs and two, usually longer, tentacles...
, and 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...
are common in the yellowtail's diet. Often, the California Yellowtail are found in schools feeding at the surface of the water, as well as deeper down. This species prefers a water temperature of 21–22 °C (69.8–71.6 F), though have also been found in waters between 18–24 °C (64.4–75.2 F). Temperatures cooler than 18° would make the Yellowtail sink into deeper waters to conserve energy.
Range and habitat
The yellowtail's range is circumglobal, in subtropical waters. The yellowtail can be found near Catalina IslandSanta Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...
, San Clemente Island
San Clemente Island
San Clemente Island is the southernmost of the Channel Islands of California. It is owned and operated by the United States Navy, and is a part of Los Angeles County. Defined by the United States Census Bureau as Block Group 2 of Census Tract 5991 of Los Angeles County, California, it is long and...
, Santa Monica Bay
Santa Monica Bay
Santa Monica Bay is a bight of the Pacific Ocean in southern California, United States. Its boundaries are slightly ambiguous, but it is generally considered to be the part of the Pacific within an imaginary line drawn between Point Dume, in Malibu, and the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Its eastern...
, as well as in Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
waters like Baja California Peninsula
Baja California Peninsula
The Baja California peninsula , is a peninsula in northwestern Mexico. Its land mass separates the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of California. The Peninsula extends from Mexicali, Baja California in the north to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur in the south.The total area of the Baja California...
´s and Sea of Cortes. Yellowtail populations have also been found in waters off 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...
, the Walter Shoals, Amsterdam Island, 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...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, 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...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, Rapa
Rapa
-French Polynesia:* Rapa Iti, an island in the southernmost of the Austral Islands of French Polynesia-Poland:* Rapa, Poland, a village in the administrative district of Gmina Banie Mazurskie, in Gołdap County, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship-Portugal:...
, Pitcairn Island, and Easter Island
Easter Island
Easter Island is a Polynesian island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian triangle. A special territory of Chile that was annexed in 1888, Easter Island is famous for its 887 extant monumental statues, called moai, created by the early Rapanui people...
. In the Eastern Pacific they can be found in waters off of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, as well as from Canada to Chile They usually found around offshore islands, rocky reefs, and kelp beds.
Conservation status
The Yellowtail was common in waters around CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, but has recently been overfished by Japanese fishing ships. Overfishing is becoming more of a problem as fishers move from areas in which this fish has become scarce to United States' waters in search of this fish. They spawn in warm waters 100–300 miles away from the Californian coast and return in May or June until September or December. They spawn slowly but may live up to and in excess of 30 years. One major spawning ground is at Cedros Island
Cedros Island
Cedros Island is a Mexican island in the Pacific Ocean....
. Spawning usually begins at three years old. Yellowtail are aggressive towards other fish. They will often feed more frequently during spawning, which makes an easy target for commercial fishers. They are currently not on the list of endangered animals.
Yellowtail kingfish
The yellowtail kingfish or southern kingfish, Seriola lalandi lalandi, is a subspecies of yellowtail amberjack, a jack of the genus SeriolaSeriola
Seriola is a genus of bony fish, commonly known as amberjacks. Nine species are currently recognized, although these were formerly split into many more...
, found off south eastern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and the north east coast of the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
of 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...
. Very little is known of the kingfish's biology, including their habitat preferences throughout juvenile life stages, migration patterns and wild reproductive behaviour. Maximum length is often reported to reach up to 180 cm. Kingfish can be eaten in a variety of ways, including barbecuing, sashimi, and drying.