Blue Trevally, Carangoides ferdau (Forsskål 1775)


Other Names: Banded Trevally, Barred Trevally

Blue Trevally, Carangoides ferdau, in northern Fiji, October 2019. Source: Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Summary:
A bluish-green to yellowish-green trevally becoming silvery below with 5-7 broad, vertical dusky bars along the sides, and often inconspicuous golden spots above the level of the pectoral fin. The soft dorsal and anal fins are yellowish-green with white tips on the lobes, the caudal fin is yellowish-green with a narrow dark margin, and the pelvic fins are whitish to clear.
The barred pattern is more pronounced in juveniles, which sometimes shelter among the tentacles of large pelagic jellyfish.

Cite this page as:
Carangoides ferdau in Fishes of Australia, accessed 20 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/4260

Blue Trevally, Carangoides ferdau (Forsskål 1775)

More Info


Distribution

Jurien Bay and offshore reefs of Western Australia, to Ashmore and Cartier Islands in the Timor Sea, and Cape York, Queensland and reefs in the Coral Sea, to at least Jervis Bay, New South Wales; also Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island in the eastern Indian Ocean, and Norfolk Island in the Tasman Sea. Elsewhere the species is widespread in the Indo-west-central Pacific.
Inhabits coastal sandy areas near coral reefs, in lagoons and estuaries in depths to 60 m.

Features

Dorsal fin VIII + I, 26-34; Anal fin II + I, 21-26; Pectoral fin I, 20-21; Gill rakers 24-29; Vertebrae 24; Lateral line 82-90 (curved part) + 12-17 (straight part) + 26-31 scutes.
Snout bluntly rounded; upper jaw highly protractile; both jaws with narrow bands of villiform teeth. 
Curved section of lateral line only slightly arched, longer than straight section, junction of curved and straight sections below 15-20th soft dorsal-fin rays. Naked area on breast extending less than one third of distance to naked pectoral-fin base.  

Size

Adults usually with 5-7 broad, vertical dusky bars on sides of body; lips never papillose; snout 6.9-8. 1 %; eye 6.2-8. 1 %; upperjawlength to snout ratio 1.2-1.4; snout to eye ratio 0.95-1.22; curved lateral line segment only slightly arched, longer than straigh

Colour

The body is a blue-green to yellow-green above, becoming silvery below, with adults having five or six dusky vertical bands which usually persist after death.[8] Numerous, inconspicuous golden spots often are present on the sides, mostly above the level of the pectoral fins. The soft dorsal and anal fins are pale yellowish-green, and the anterior lobes of both often have white to blue tips. The caudal fin is yellow green, having a dark trailing edge and tips, while the pelvic fins are whitish to hyaline.[9]

Feeding

Feeds mostly on benthic crustaceans (prawns and crabs) and molluscs, occasionally taking small fishes.

Fisheries

A popular game and an excellent food fish. Also taken in commercial fisheries in many parts of its range.

Species Citation

Scomber ferdau Forsskål 1775, Descriptiones Animalium: 55. Type locality: Jidda, Saudi Arabia (as Djedda), Red Sea.

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Blue Trevally, Carangoides ferdau (Forsskål 1775)

References


Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls. 

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1994. Fishes of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 412: 1-21 

Allen, G.R., Steene, R.C. & Orchard, M. 2007. Fishes of Christmas Island. Christmas Island : Christmas Island Natural History Association 2 edn, 284 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.

Alleyne, H.G. & Macleay, W.J. 1877. The ichthyology of the Chevert Expedition. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 1(3–4): 261-281, 321-359, pls 3-9, 10-17 (described as Caranx laticaudis)

Forsskål, P. 1775. Descriptiones Animalium Avium, Amphibiorum, Piscium, Insectorum, Vermium; quæ in Itinere Orientali observavit Petrus Forskål. Post Mortem Auctoris edidit Carsten Niebuhr. Adjuncta est Materia Medica Kakirina atque Tabula Maris Rubri Geographica. Hauniæ : Mölleri 1-19, i-xxxiv, 164 pp., 1 map. See ref at BHL

Gloerfelt-Tarp, T. & Kailola, P.J. 1984. Trawled Fishes of Southern Indonesia and Northwest Australia. Jakarta : Dir. Gen. Fish. (Indonesia), German Tech. Coop., Aust. Dev. Ass. Bur. 406 pp.

Grant, E.M. 2002. Guide to Fishes. Redcliffe : EM Grant Pty Ltd 880 pp. 

Gunn, J.S. 1990. A revision of selected genera of the family Carangidae (Pisces) from Australian waters. Records of the Australian Museum, Supplement 12: 1-77 doi:10.3853/j.0812-7387.12.1990.92

Hutchins, J.B. 1994. A survey of the nearshore reef fish fauna of Western Australia's west and south coasts — The Leeuwin Province. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 46: 1-66 figs 1-6 

Johnson, J.W. 1999. Annotated checklist of the fishes of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 43(2): 709-762.

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3) 

Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp. 

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs. 

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs. 

Smith, J.L.B. 1968. Studies in carangid fishes No. 4. The identity of Scomber sansus Forsskål, 1775. Occasional Papers. Department of Ichthyology, Rhodes University 15: 173-184 pls 38-39 

Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1999. Family Carangidae. pp. 2659-2756 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 4 pp. 2069-2790. 

Smith-Vaniz, W.F. & Williams, I. 2016. Carangoides ferdau (errata version published in 2017). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T20429455A115372940. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T20429455A46664064.en. Downloaded on 10 May 202

Whitley, G.P. 1951. New fish names and records. Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 1949–50: 61-68 figs 8-100. (described as Ferdauia lindemanensis)

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37337068

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Depth:1-60 m

Fishing:Game fish

Habitat:Reef associated, sandy areas

Max Size:70 cm TL

Species Image Gallery

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map