Yellowtail Amberjack
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The yellowtail amberjack, yellowtail kingfish, hiramasa or great amberjack (''Seriola lalandi'') is a large fish found in the Southern Ocean. Although previously thought to be found in all oceans and seas, recent genetic analysis restricts ''S. lalandi'' proper to the Southern Hemisphere waters. However, they are found in Northern Hemisphere waters during certain times of the year. The fish was given its name by Monsieur de Lalande, a naturalist who first informed zoologist
Achille Valenciennes Achille Valenciennes (9 August 1794 – 13 April 1865) was a French zoologist. Valenciennes was born in Paris, and studied under Georges Cuvier. His study of parasitic worms in humans made an important contribution to the study of parasitology. ...
of the existence of this species. His reason for the use of the word ''Seriola'' (feminine diminutive form of ''seria'', a large earthenware pot) to name the fish is uncertain, but the second word ''lalandi'' was derived from his surname.


Taxonomy

The yellowtail amberjack was formally described in 1833 by French
zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
Achille Valenciennes Achille Valenciennes (9 August 1794 – 13 April 1865) was a French zoologist. Valenciennes was born in Paris, and studied under Georges Cuvier. His study of parasitic worms in humans made an important contribution to the study of parasitology. ...
from
type specimen In biology, a type is a particular wiktionary:en:specimen, specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to a ...
s sent to him by naturalist and
explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...
Pierre Antoine Delalande, who is honoured in its specific name.
Fishbase FishBase is a global species database of fish species (specifically finfish). It is the largest and most extensively accessed online database on adult finfish on the web.
includes populations of similar fish in the Northern Hemisphere within this species, but other authorities regard ''S. aureovittata'' from the North Pacific Ocean around Japan and ''S. dorsalis'' of the northeastern Pacific as separate species.


Distribution and habitat

The yellowtail amberjack occurs in tropical and temperate waters of the Southern Hemisphere and the northern Pacific. In Australia, it is recorded from
North Reef, Queensland North Reef Light is an active lighthouse located on North Reef, a planar reef, about northeast of Gladstone, Queensland, Australia in the Capricorn and Bunker Group. The lighthouse was constructed on a migratory patch of sand inside a fringin ...
, (23° 11′ S) to Trigg Island, Western Australia, (31° 52′ S), and as far south as
Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...
. The yellowtail amberjack (or yellowtail kingfish as it is known in Australia) is a highly mobile pelagic species, and tends to either form single-species schools, or combine with southern bluefin tuna ('' Thunnus maccoyii'') and silver trevally (''
Pseudocaranx dentex The white trevally (''Pseudocaranx dentex''), also known as striped jack,) is a jack of the family Carangidae widespread in tropical and warm temperate areas between 40°N and 47°S, in the Atlantic, Mediterranean, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. It h ...
''). They prefer water temperatures of 17‒24 °C. In general, they inhabit rocky reefs and adjacent sandy areas in coastal waters and occasionally enter estuaries. They are found from shallow water down to depths around 50 m, although have been caught from over 300 m. Young fish up to 7 kg are known to form shoals of several hundred fish. They are generally found close to the coast, while larger fish are more common around deep reefs and offshore islands. Juvenile yellowtail amberjack are rarely seen, as they are often found far from land associated with floating debris or weed which provide camouflage. Juveniles are yellow with black bands. This colouration fades as the fish ages, and by about 30 cm in length, the fish has assumed its adult colouration.


Biology

Very little is known of the yellowtail amberjack's biology, including its habitat preferences throughout juvenile life stages, migration patterns, and wild reproductive behaviour. Adults live around rocky
reefs A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral or similar relatively stable material, lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic processes— deposition of sand, wave erosion planing down rock out ...
, rocky outcrops, and drop-offs in coastal waters, and around pinnacles and offshore islands. Maximum length is often reported to reach up to 180 cm. Large kingfish caught near Port Augusta in South Australia have been recorded at weights of between 40 and 50 kilograms. Recreational fishers have reported that kingfish catches near
Port Augusta Port Augusta is a small city in South Australia. Formerly a port, seaport, it is now a road traffic and Junction (rail), railway junction city mainly located on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf immediately south of the gulf's head and about ...
were more reliable when the Playford Power Stations were discharging hot water into the upper Spencer Gulf. The power stations have been decommissioned, but kingfish still migrate to upper Spencer Gulf as the southern gulf water cools.


Sydney Harbour

Before the introduction of kingfish traps (for commercial fishing) in the 1970s, huge numbers of yellowtail amberjack were in
Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...
. These traps were so effective that some studies suggested the traps may have wiped out as much as 60% of the larger amberjack population. In the mid-1990s under heavy pressure from recreational anglers, Bob Martin, the minister for fisheries, prohibited the use of these traps in Sydney Harbour.


Diet

Being a pelagic fish, yellowtail amberjack are highly active predators, usually in schools or in pairs. Their main diet consists of baitfish including yellowtail mackerel, squid, prawns, garfish, and kahawai.


Uses and aquaculture

''S. lalandi'' has been established as a suitable candidate for marine
aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. lot ...
. In contrast to the culture of the
Japanese amberjack The Japanese amberjack or yellowtail, ''Seriola quinqueradiata'', is a species of jack fish in the family Carangidae. It is native to the northwest Pacific Ocean, ranging from China (called ), Korea (called ), and Japan to Hawaii. It is greatly ...
(''S. quinqueradiata''), which has long been cultured extensively in
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, juveniles of ''S. lalandi'' are not easily available from the wild, and juveniles are produced in
hatcheries A hatchery is a facility where eggs are hatched under artificial conditions, especially those of fish, poultry or even turtles. It may be used for ex-situ conservation purposes, i.e. to breed rare or endangered species under controlled condi ...
from captive-breeding stock. In 2010, the Stehr Group in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
was the largest producer of cultured ''S. lalandi'' in the world. Trials elsewhere in Australia have been undertaken and in some cases abandoned after stock losses. Water quality concerns were raised following farmed kingfish mortalities in upper Spencer Gulf, South Australia, in 2011. In the late 2010s, yellowtail kingfish farms were established near
Geraldton Geraldton (Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...
and the Abrolhos Islands in Western Australia by Indian Ocean Fresh Australia and Huon Aquaculture, respectively. Some attempts have been made to culture the species in
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, both in sea cages and a large land-based system at
Parengarenga Harbour Parengarenga Harbour is a natural harbour close to the northernmost point on the North Island of New Zealand. Located at the northern end of the Aupouri Peninsula, it extends inland for over 10 kilometres, almost severing the northern tip of t ...
(northern New Zealand).
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
is currently testing sea-cage and land-based farming methods. In Germany, ''S. lalandi'' is being cultivated in the first land-based seafish-culture. A Dutch company, The Kingfish Company, is planning to open a land-based aquaculture operation in Maine, U.S.A., in 2022. Most cultured ''S. lalandi'' is sold to the Japanese restaurant market for consumption as ''sashimi''. Amberjack can be eaten in a variety of ways, including
grilling Grilling is a form of cooking that involves dry heat applied to the surface of food, commonly from above, below or from the side. Grilling usually involves a significant amount of direct, radiant heat, and tends to be used for cooking meat a ...
and
drying Drying is a mass transfer process consisting of the removal of water or another solvent by evaporation from a solid, semi-solid or liquid. This process is often used as a final production step before selling or packaging products. To be considered ...
.


References


Further reading

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External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2157453 Seriola Fish of the Red Sea Fish described in 1833 New Zealand seafood