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The skipjack tuna (''Katsuwonus pelamis'') is a perciform fish in the tuna family,
Scombridae The mackerel, tuna, and bonito family, Scombridae, includes many of the most important and familiar food fishes. The family consists of 51 species in 15 genera and two subfamilies. All species are in the subfamily Scombrinae, except the but ...
, and is the only member of the genus ''Katsuwonus''. It is also known as katsuo, arctic bonito, mushmouth, oceanic bonito, striped tuna or victor fish. It grows up to in length. It is a cosmopolitan pelagic fish found in tropical and warm-temperate waters. It is a very important species for fisheries. It is also the namesake of the nuclear submarine USS ''Skipjack''.


Description

It is a streamlined, fast-swimming pelagic fish common in tropical waters throughout the world, where it inhabits surface waters in large shoals (up to 50,000 fish, often in combination with other scombridaes), feeding on fish,
crustacean Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquatic arthrop ...
s,
cephalopod A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan Taxonomic rank, class Cephalopoda (Greek language, Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral symm ...
s, and mollusks. It is an important prey species for sharks and large pelagic fishes and is often used as live bait when fishing for marlin. It has no scales, except on the lateral line and the corselet (a band of large, thick scales forming a circle around the body behind the head). Like other tuna, it lacks a
swim bladder The swim bladder, gas bladder, fish maw, or air bladder is an internal gas-filled organ (anatomy), organ in bony fish that functions to modulate buoyancy, and thus allowing the fish to stay at desired water depth without having to maintain lift ...
, and must keep swimming to stay buoyant. It commonly reaches fork lengths up to and a mass of . Its maximum fork length is , and its maximum mass is . Determining the age of skipjack tuna is difficult, and estimates of its potential lifespan range between 8 and 12 years. Skipjack tuna are batch spawners. Spawning occurs year-round in equatorial waters, but it gets more seasonal further away from the equator. Fork length at first spawning is about . It is also known for its potent smell. Skipjack tuna has the highest percentage of skeletal muscle devoted to locomotion of all animals, at 68% of the animal's total body mass. Skipjack tuna are highly sensitive to environmental conditions and changes. Climate change effects are significant in marine ecosystems, and ecological factors may change fish distribution and catchability.


Fisheries

It is an important commercial and
game fish Game fish, sport fish or quarry refer to popular fish species pursued by recreational fishing, recreational fishers (typically angling, anglers), and can be freshwater fish, freshwater or saltwater fish. Game fish can be fish as food, eaten aft ...
, usually caught using purse seine nets, and is sold fresh, frozen, canned, dried, salted, and smoked. In 2018, landings of were reported, the third highest of any marine capture fishery (after Peruvian anchoveta and Alaska pollock). Countries recording large amounts of skipjack catches include the
Maldives The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, abou ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
,
Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
, and
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
. Skipjack is the most fecund of the main commercial tunas, and its population is considered sustainable against its current consumption. Its fishing is still controversial due to the methodology, with rod and reel or fishery options being promoted as ecologically preferable. Purse seine methods are considered unsustainable by some authorities due to excess
bycatch Bycatch (or by-catch), in the fishing industry, is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while fishing for specific species or sizes of wildlife. Bycatch is either the wrong species, the wrong sex, or is undersized or juve ...
, although bycatch is said to be much reduced if fish aggregation devices are not used. These considerations have led to the availability of canned skipjack marked with the fishing method used to catch it. As much as 95% of skipjack tuna catches may be used as canned tuna. Skipjack is considered to have "moderate" mercury contamination. As a result, pregnant women are advised against eating large quantities. In addition, skipjack's livers were tested globally for tributyltin (TBT) contamination. TBT is an organotin compound introduced into marine ecosystems through antifouling paint used on ship hulls and has been determined to be very toxic. About 90% of skipjack tested positive for contamination, especially in
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
, where regulations of TBT use are less rigorous than in Europe or the US.


As food


Japan

Skipjack tuna is used extensively in
Japanese cuisine Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan (Japanese language, Japanese: ) is based on rice with m ...
, where it is known as . It is eaten raw in
sushi is a traditional Japanese dish made with , typically seasoned with sugar and salt, and combined with a variety of , such as seafood, vegetables, or meat: raw seafood is the most common, although some may be cooked. While sushi comes in n ...
and
sashimi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese delicacy consisting of fresh raw fish or Raw meat, meat sliced into thin pieces and often eaten with soy sauce. Origin The word ''sashimi'' means 'pierced body', i.e., "wikt:刺身, 刺身" = ''sashimi'', whe ...
, as well as slightly seared in '' katsuo tataki''. It is also smoked and dried to make '' katsuobushi'', and the shavings are commonly used to make '' dashi'' (soup stock). ''Katsuobushi'' flakes are also used as seasoning, such as in '' onigiri'' (rice balls) or on top of
tofu or bean curd is a food prepared by Coagulation (milk), coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', and ''extra (or super) firm''. It originated in Chin ...
. The raw viscera of skipjack tuna is salted and fermented to make '' shutō'', a type of '' shiokara''. The fish's fat content changes during migrations along the Japanese islands. When they migrate north in summer, they are called ''hatsugatsuo'' ("first katsuo") or ''noborigatsuo'' ("ascending katsuo"), and have a lesser amount of fat. When they migrate south in autumn, they are called ''modorigatsuo'' ("returning katsuo") or ''kudarigatsuo'' ("descending katsuo"), and have a high level of fat. KatsuoTataki.jpg, '' Katsuo no tataki'', seared skipjack Katsuo (bonito) Nigiri.jpg, As
sushi is a traditional Japanese dish made with , typically seasoned with sugar and salt, and combined with a variety of , such as seafood, vegetables, or meat: raw seafood is the most common, although some may be cooked. While sushi comes in n ...
Katsuobushi 2.jpg, '' Katsuobushi'' flakes NDL-DC 1304722-Keisai Eisen-十二ケ月の内 四月 ほとゝきす・かつほ-crd.jpg, ''Woman preparing Katsuo'', by Keisai Eisen (1790–1848)


Other places

In
Indonesian cuisine Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions by various ethnic groups that formed in the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed ...
, skipjack tuna is known as ''cakalang''. The most popular Indonesian dish made from skipjack tuna is '' cakalang fufu'' from Minahasa. It is a cured and smoked skipjack tuna dish, made by cooking the fish after clipping it to a bamboo frame. Skipjack known as ''kalhubilamas'' in Maldives is integral to Maldivian cuisine. Skipjack tuna is an important fish in the native cuisine of Hawaii (where it is known as ''aku'') and throughout the Pacific islands. Hawaiians prefer to eat ''aku'' either raw as a ''sashimi'' or '' poke'' or seared in Japanese ''tataki'' style. The trade in pickled skipjack tuna is a driving force behind the commercial fishery of this species in
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. Ikan Cakalang Fufu Asap Khas Manado.jpg, Indonesian '' cakalang fufu'' Gaiado a secar, fotografia de Virgílio Gomes, 3 de setembro de 2021, Caniçal - Image 193630.jpg, Skipjack drying on Madeira Island Negombo beach, drying fish (001).JPG, Skipjack drying in
Negombo Negombo (, ), also known as Punchi Romaya (Little Rome), is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the west coast and at the mouth of the Negombo Lagoon, in the Western Province, Sri Lanka, Western Province, from Colombo via the E03 expressway ...
,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...


References


Sources


Pacific skipjack tuna
''NOAA FishWatch''. Retrieved 5 November 2012.

''NOAA FishWatch''. Retrieved 5 November 2012.


External links

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skipjack tuna The skipjack tuna (''Katsuwonus pelamis'') is a perciform fish in the tuna family, Scombridae, and is the only member of the genus ''Katsuwonus''. It is also known as katsuo, arctic bonito, mushmouth, oceanic bonito, striped tuna or victor fish. ...
Commercial fish Cosmopolitan fish
skipjack tuna The skipjack tuna (''Katsuwonus pelamis'') is a perciform fish in the tuna family, Scombridae, and is the only member of the genus ''Katsuwonus''. It is also known as katsuo, arctic bonito, mushmouth, oceanic bonito, striped tuna or victor fish. ...
Scombridae Game fish Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Taxa named by Kamakichi Kishinouye