Eastern Australian Salmon, Arripis trutta (Forster 1801)

Other Names: Australian Salmon, Bay Trout, Black Back, Blackback, Blackback Salmon, Buck, Buck Salmon, Cockie Salmon, Cocky Salmon, Colonial Salmon, East Australian Salmon, Kahawai, Newfish, Salmon, Salmon Trout

A school of Eastern Australian Salmon, Arripis trutta, at Jimmies Island, Batemans Bay, New South Wales. Source: Andrew J. Green / Reef Life Survey. License: CC by Attribution

Summary:

A popular sports fish with a dark bluish-green to olive-green body, and indistinct rows of dark spots forming narrow irregular bands along the upper sides. Juveniles have golden bars on the upper sides that break up into spots in larger individuals, a yellowish pectoral fin with a black basal spot, and a black margin on the caudal fin. The scales of Eastern Australian Salmon feel smooth to touch, especially those of large fish.

Eastern Australian Salmon schooling at Bawley Point, New South Wales.

Video of juvenile Eastern Australian Salmon in the surf at the mouth of the Thurra River, Croajingolong National Park, Victoria.

Video on Australian Salmon research by FRDC (Arripis trutta): population structure, reproduction, diet and composition of commercial & recreational catches in New South Wales.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2025, Arripis trutta in Fishes of Australia, accessed 30 Jun 2026, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/406

Eastern Australian Salmon, Arripis trutta (Forster 1801)

More Info

Distribution	Moreton Bay, southern Queensland, to Victoria, northern Tasmania, and west to at least Coffin Bay, South Australia. Also the Lord Howe Province and Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea. The species is abundant in New Zealand, ranging north to the Kermadec Islands, and east to the Chatham Islands. Eastern Australia Salmon undertake migrations of up to thousands of kilometres, forming vast schools along oceanic beaches and exposed areas coastal areas. Juveniles form smaller schools in bays and estuaries, mostly in the southern part of their range.
Features	Dorsal fin IX, 15-16; Anal fin III, 9-10; Pectoral fin 16-18; Lateral line 49-53; Gill rakers on first gill arch 33-40; Vertebrae 25. Body long, slender, streamlined; edge of bone under before eye with prominent serrations in smaller fish; scales smooth to touch in large fish. Length of caudal fin lobe about equal to head length.
Size
Colour	Dark blue green above, silvery white below, with golden bars on the upper sides in juveniles that break up into large spots in slightly larger individuals, a bright yellow pectoral fin bright yellow, and caudal and spinous portion of dorsal fin with a blackish margin.
Feeding	Feeds mostly on small pelagic baitfish, and also on pelagic crustaceans such as krill.
Biology	Matures at about 4 years of age at about 39 cm. Spawns in the surf zone between Lakes Entrance and Bermagui during late spring and summer. Large migratory schools are often seen moving along the open coast, and juveniles may be found in bays and estuaries.
Fisheries	Commercially fished in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, and taken mostly with purse-seine and beach haul nets. This highly-prized fighting fish is also taken with rod and reel using baited hooks and spinning lures. Considered to be a strong-flavoured fish with relatively dark pink flesh.
Similar Species	Very similar to and difficult to distinguish from the Western Australian Salmon, *Arripis truttaceus*. The species differ in gill rakers counts - Eastern Australian Salmon have 33 or more gill rakers on the first arch, vs 31 or fewer gill rakers in the Western Australian Salmon.
Etymology	The specific name is from the Latin trutta (= trout), presumably referring to “Salmon-peel” (young salmon), the name among British sailors when the species was described.
Species Citation	Sciaena trutta Forster, 1801, Systema Ichthyologiae: 542. Type locality: Wellington Harbour, New Zealand, 41°16'S, 174°53'E (neotype).
Author	Bray, D.J. 2025
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Eastern Australian Salmon, Arripis trutta (Forster 1801)

References

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