Skipjack Tuna

Fact File: Common Name(s): Skipjack Tuna Scientific Name: Katsuwonus pelamis (Linnaeus, 1758) Usual Size: To 108cm which is equated to a weight of 32/34kg - common to 80cm UK Record Weights from rod/line: Shore: Boat: MAFF Minimum Size: Shore: Boat:

Identification: Typical tunny shape. Colour: Back dark purplish blue, lower sides and belly silver. In live specimens longitudinal dark bands may appear as discontinuous lines of dark blotches. 4 or 5 long broad stripes on the belly Breeding: Egg dispersal. Spawning takes place in batches in equatorial waters and in sub-tropical waters from early spring to autumn, although the season shortens the further the distance from the equator. A female of between 41/87cm can disperse between 80,000 and 2,000,000 eggs per season Habitat: Tending to be an offshore species with occasional migrations into inshore waters also a surface schooling tuna. Preferred water temperature ranges are 15 to 30ºC, with mature fish being within the 18 to 20ºC band. Food: Fish, squid, crustaceans and known to be cannibalistic Range: In most tropical and warm temperate waters. For the UK the southern coast line in summers of high sea water temperatures. Additional Notes: One positively identified Skipjack Tuna was taken in an inshore net in Lyme Bay in October 1989. Often confused with another tuna species - Atlantic Bonito. REFERENCES: FAO Species Catalogue 2 - Scombrids of The World - Collette/Nauen Fishes of the North-Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean - Whitehead, Bauchot, Hureau, Nielsen, Tortonese Key to the Fishes of Northern Europe - Wheeler

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