Species: Decapterus macrosoma, Shortfin scad
mouth membrane grey or transparent
Decapterus macrosoma Bleeker, 1851
Shortfin scad
Elongate, slender, cylindrical; eye covered with adipose eyelid except for central slit; top and rear end of upper jaw concave on top and at end, rounded at the lower corner; front of shoulder that meets gill chamber with 2 moderate sized papillae; gill rakers (including rudiments) 10-13 + 34-38; dorsal rays VIII+I, 33-39 (including detached rear finlet); anal rays II+I, 27-31 (including detached rear finlet); pectoral fin 61-75% of head length; tail base slender; tail strongly forked; lateral line with long, low arch anteriorly, scales on straight part by 14-29, followed by 24-40 scutes; total scales and scutes in lateral line (excluding caudal scales) 110-126; scales on top of head usually extend forward to level of the rear margin of pupil; branches of lateral line extending onto nape only.
Metallic blue on back, silvery below; membrane at front of roof of mouth transparent or grey; a small black blotch on upper margin of gill cover; caudal fin translucent to dusky.
Size: attains 35 cm.
Habitat: pelagic in coastal and oceanic waters.
Depth: 12-170 m.
Widely distributed in the tropical Indo-Pacific from East Africa to the Americas; southern Baja to Chile; the Galapagos.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Marine Only
- Marine
- Inshore/Offshore
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- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
-
- Surface
- Near Surface
- Water column only
- Mid Water
- Habitat
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- Water column
- FishBase Habitat
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- Pelagic
- Feeding Group
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- Data
- Planktivore
- Diet
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- Data
- Pelagic crustacea
- Pelagic fish larvae
- Pelagic fish eggs
- Zooplankton
- Egg Type
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- Pelagic larva
- No data
- Pelagic
- Global Endemism
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- "Transpacific" (East + Central &/or West Pacific)
- All Pacific (West + Central + East)
- TEP non-endemic
- All species
- Indo-Pacific only (Indian + Pacific Oceans)
- Regional Endemism
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- Eastern Pacific non-endemic
- Continent only
- Continent
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) non-endemic
- All species
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Northern Subtropical (Cortez Province + Sinaloan Gap)
- South Temperate (Peruvian Province )
- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- North Temperate (Californian Province &/or Northern Gulf of California)
- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- Antitropical (North and South temperate)
- IUCN Red List
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- Not evaluated / Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 35
- Depth Range Min
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- 12
- Depth Range Max
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- 170
