Japanese meagre
(Argyrosomus japonicus)
General data
Argyrosomus japonicus is a silvery to bronze-green colored fish, a member of the family Sciaenidae, which may grow up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) in length.] It is known as Japanese meagre, mulloway or jewfish on the east coast of Australia, butterfish in South Australia, kingfish or river kingfish in Western Australia, and dusky/squaretail kob, dusky salmon, salmon or kabeljou in South Africa, Ô-nibe in Japan. The name jewfish refers to its large otoliths, which are prized as jewels by some fishers.[3]
Description
Argyrosomus japonicus is a large, slender fish which can grow to 2 m (6 ft 7 in). It has a copper-colored head and is silvery with a bronze-green dorsal surface and paler belly. It has a row of distinctive white spots running along the lateral line. The caudal fin is angular in juveniles but becomes more rounded in larger fish.
Distribution and habitat
Argyrosomus japonicus has an Indo-Pacific distribution occurring in coastal waters surrounding Australia, Africa, India, Pakistan, China and Japan. Adults are gregarious and are found over soft bottoms mainly beyond the surf zone, occasionally going inshore. Juveniles are exclusively found in shallow water and sometimes move into estuaries.
