The Almaco Amberjack is a species in the family of the Carangidae and thus belongs to the superclass of bony fish. Seriola rivoliana was first described in 1833 by Valenciennes.
It has a lot of synonyms such as Longfin Yellowtail, Almaco Jack, Amber, Amberjack, Crevalle, Deep-water Amberjack, European Amberjack, Falcate Amberjack, Greater Amberjack, Highfin Amberjack, Jack, Longfin Kingfish, Rock Salmon, Silvercoat Jack and Yellow Kingfish.
Description, Anatomy & Characteristics
The Longfin Yellowtail has an elongated, slightly high-backed and laterally compressed body. The highest point is at the base of the second dorsal fin.
Their basic colour is silver, with the back slightly darker and the abdomen lighter coloured. On the flanks are sometimes green or amber shades. Particularly striking is a dark stripe that runs from the mouth through the eye, towards the dorsal fin.
The front rays of the second dorsal fin and the anal fin are strongly elongated, crescent-shaped and usually darker than the rest of the fins.
Seriola rivoliana grows up to 160cm long and weighs up to 60kg.
Habitat & Distribution
The Almaco Amberjack lives in open water, in depths between 3 and 250m.
When scuba diving in the Canary Islands you can observe it every now and then. Although it lives in large swarms, it is usually due to overfishing that you only see small swarms of 3 to 5 animals.
Its distribution range is very large. In the western Atlantic Ocean, it occurs from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea to Argentina, including Trinidad and Tobago. In the eastern Atlantic, you can find them from Portugal along the African coast to Namibia. It also lives off the Azores, Madeira, Ascension and in the western Mediterranean. In the Indo-Pacific, Seriola rivoliana is known from Somalia to South Africa. Also around India, Indonesia, the Philippines, in the south of Japan, Australia and Hawaii one can observe the Longfin Yellowtail. In the eastern Pacific, it occurs from Southern California to Peru, which includes some offshore islands.
Biology, Diet & Reproduction
Seriola rivoliana feeds on other fish and invertebrates.
The Almaco Amberjack frees itself from parasites by rubbing against the rough skin of passing sharks.
Their reproduction takes place weekly throughout the year. Eggs are released into the open water and live pelagic.
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