Southern bluefin tuna
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The southern bluefin tuna, Thunnus maccoyii, is a tuna of the family Scombridae found in open southern hemisphere waters of all the worlds oceans mainly between 30°S and 50°S, to nearly 60°S. At up to 2.5 m and weighing up to 400 kg it is one of the largest bony fishes.
The southern bluefin tuna is a large streamlined fast swimming fish with a long slender caudal peduncle and relatively short dorsal, pectoral and anal fins. The body is completely covered in small scales.
The body colour is blue-black on the back and silver-white on the flanks and belly, with bright yellow caudal keels in adult specimens. The first dorsal fin colour is grey with a yellow tinge, the second dorsal is red-brown, and the finlets are yellow with a darker border.
The southern bluefin tuna is an opportunistic feeder, preying on a wide variety of fishes, crustaceans, cephalopods, salps, and other marine animals.
It is being overfished and is critically endangered.
References
- "[Parapercis maccoyii]." FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. March 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
- Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8
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