Marine Life

Frigate tuna

Raagondi

Auxis thazard

Auxis thazard is a major fishery in the Maldives, third in importance in terms of catch after skipjack and yellowfin tuna, and is mainly caught by pole and line, but also by trolling. However, it is not as popular as a food fish as skipjack, possibly due to its small size, boniness, and potential confusion with the poisonous “raagondi koli” (see page 372).

Details

§ 01

size: Common to 35 cm; max. 58 cm
color: Bluish dorsally turning to deep blue on head, silvery white below. A pattern of 15 or more narrow, oblique to nearly horizontal, dark wavy lines in the scaleless area above the lateral line.
order: Perciformes
family: Scombridae
image url: https://assets.explore.mv/fishes/auxis-thazard.png
habitat and biology: Epipelagic, neritic, and oceanic species form large schools and feed on small pelagic fishes, planktonic crabs, shrimps, and stomatopod larvae.
distinctive characters: This species is epipelagic, meaning it is found in the upper layers of the water column and is visible from the surface. It is also a neritic species, meaning it is found in coastal waters, as well as an oceanic species, meaning it is found in the open ocean. It tends to form large schools and feeds on small pelagic fish, planktonic crabs, shrimps, and stomatopod larvae.