United States (contiguous states) country information

Common names: John, Ladyfish, Skipjack
Occurrence: native
Salinity: freshwater
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: gamefish: yes;
Comments: Abundant in Florida, where it is often caught in mangrove areas and other inshore waterways, estuaries and bays, over both sandy and muddy bottoms (Ref. 9987). Also found in "large rivers" in Chesapeake Bay region; also Cape Charles and Lynnhaven Roads, Virginia (Ref. 4639). Also Ref. 27549, 93252.
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html
National Fisheries Authority: http://www.nmfs.gov
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986
National Database:

Common names from other countries

Guinée-machète, Malacho, Riverfish, ... more

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Elopiformes (Tarpons and tenpounders) > Elopidae (Tenpounders)
Etymology: Elops: Greek, ellops = a kind of serpent (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Linnaeus.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; brackish; demersal; pH range: ? - 10.4; amphidromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 0 - 50 m (Ref. 13325). Subtropical; 11°C - 34°C (Ref. 127853); 29°N - 17°S

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Western Atlantic: Cape Cod (USA), Bermuda, and northern Gulf of Mexico to southern Brazil. Questionable occurrence records in the China (Ref. 52360), Taiwan (47843), and Vietnam (Ref. 9706, 46452).

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 100.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 26340); common length : 60.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 3718); max. published weight: 10.1 kg (Ref. 4699)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 25 - 29; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 16 - 19; Vertebrae: 73 - 85. Scales small, more than 100 in lateral line. Gular plate narrow (Ref. 26938). Silvery overall, with bluish on upper surface (Ref. 7251). Branchiostegal rays: 26-33 (Ref. 4639).

Occur in shallow neritic areas, over muddy bottoms (Ref. 5217). Also found in brackish estuaries and juveniles are common in lagoons and hyper-saline bays (Ref. 5217). Form large schools close to the shore (Ref. 9987). Feed mainly on crustaceans and small fishes. Spawn in the open sea (Ref. 5217). Larval development is represented by profound changes in body form accompanied by 2 periods of length increase, interspaced by a period of length decrease (Ref. 4639). Noted for their habit of skipping along the surface of the water and for jumping after being hooked (Ref. 5521). Marketed fresh, salted and frozen but considered a second rate food fish (Ref. 3718). Rhynchobothrium bulbifer found in the viscera of the adult (Ref. 37032).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Spawns offshore, the larvae drifting towards the coast where they shelter and grow (Ref. 9987). Leptocephalus larvae are found in salinities as low as 0.0+ to 0.8 ppt (Ref. 75142).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986. A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p. (Ref. 7251)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 30 March 2011

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial; gamefish: yes; bait: usually

FAO(Fisheries: production; publication : search) | FishSource | Sea Around Us

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Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 25 - 29.1, mean 28 (based on 1142 cells).

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804): PD₅₀ = 0.5176 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].

Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00617 (0.00458 - 0.00830), b=2.94 (2.86 - 3.02), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).

Trophic level (Ref. 69278): 3.5 ±0.3 se; based on diet studies.

Resilience (Ref. 120179): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.22-0.3; tm=2).

Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153): High vulnerability (60 of 100).

Climate Vulnerability (Ref. 125649): Very high vulnerability (88 of 100).

Price category (Ref. 80766): Low.

Elops saurus Linnaeus, 1766