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Scomber japonicus  Houttuyn, 1782

Chub mackerel
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Scomber japonicus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Scomber japonicus (Chub mackerel)
Scomber japonicus
Picture by Busse, K.

country information

Common names: Spanskur makrelur
Occurrence:
Salinity:
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments:
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Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
National Database:

Classification / Names

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Perciformes (Perch-likes) > Scombridae (Mackerels, tunas, bonitos) > Scombrinae
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Common names from other countries

Pacific chub mackerel, Maquereau espagnol pacifique, Estornino del Pacífico, ... more

Main reference

Collette, B.B. and C.E. Nauen. 1983. (Ref. 168)
 References | Biblio | Coordinator : Collette, Bruce B. | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 64.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9015); common length : 30.0 cm FL male/unsexed; (Ref. 168); max. published weight: 2.9 kg (Ref. 26550); max. reported age: 18 years (Ref. 35185)

Length at first maturity
 Lm 26.1  range ? - ? cm

Environment

Marine; pelagic-neritic; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 0 - 300 m (Ref. 168), usually 50 - 200 m (Ref. 35185)

Climate / Range

Subtropical; 10°C - 27°C (Ref. 35185), preferred 25°C (Ref. 107945); 60°N - 48°S, 116°E - 70°W

Distribution

Indo-Pacific: anti-tropical, absent from the Indian Ocean except for South Africa, KZN to Western Cape (58304).

Reports from Atlantic incl. Mediterranean are Scomber colias, and from Red Sea and northern Indian Ocean are Scomber australasicus (Ref. 27328).
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 9 - 11; Dorsal soft rays (total): 112; Anal spines: 1; Anal soft rays: 12 - 14; Vertebrae: 31. Interpelvic process small and single. No well developed corselet. Swim bladder present. First haemal spine posterior to first interneural process; 12 to 15 interneural bones under first dorsal fin. Anal fin spine conspicuous, clearly separated from anal rays but joined to them by a membrane. Back with narrow stripes which zigzag and undulate. Belly unmarked (Pacific population) or with wavy lines (Atlantic pop.) (Ref. 168). Caudal peduncle with 5 finlets on the upper and lower edge. Distance between dorsal fins shorter than or equal to the first dorsal fin base (Ref. 35388).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

A coastal pelagic species, to a lesser extent epipelagic to mesopelagic over the continental slope (Ref. 168). Schooling by size is well developed and initiates at approximately 3 cm (Ref. 168); may also form schools with Sarda chiliensis, Trachurus symmetricus and Sardinops sagax (Ref. 9340). Adults stay near the bottom during the day; go up to the open water at night, (Ref. 5377) where they feed on copepods and other crustaceans, fishes and squids (Ref. 168). They spawn in batches (Ref. 51846). Eggs and larvae are pelagic (Ref. 6769). In Asian waters, they move to deeper water and remain inactive during the winter season (Ref. 4576). Commercially cultured in Japan. Marketed fresh, frozen, smoked, salted and occasionally canned (Ref. 9684). Eaten fried, broiled and baked (Ref. 9988). Used in Chinese medicine (Ref. 12166).

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

  Least Concern (LC) 

Threat to humans

  Harmless



Human uses

Fisheries: highly commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes; bait: usually

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Internet sources

BHL | BOLDSystems | Check for other websites | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO(fisheries: production, species profile; publication : search) | FIRMS (Stock assessments) | GenBank(genome, nucleotide) | GOBASE | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | iSpecies | National databases | Public aquariums | PubMed | RFE Identification | Scirus | Sea Around Us | SeaLifeBase | Tree of Life | uBio | uBio RSS | Wikipedia(Go, Search) | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record | Fishtrace

Estimates of some properties based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805)
 PD50 = 0.5625 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Trophic Level (Ref. 69278)
 3.4   ±0.1 se; Based on diet studies.

Resilience (Ref. 69278)
 Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.12-0.22; tm=2-3; tmax=18)

Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)
 Low to moderate vulnerability (31 of 100)
Price category (Ref. 80766)
 High