Torpedo scad
Megalaspis cordyla
- Usual depth5–58 m
- Water temperature20–30 °C
- Best monthsJune and December
- How commonOccasional
About this species
The torpedo scad, also known as the hardtail scad, finny scad, finletted mackerel scad or cordyla scad, is a species of moderately large marine fish classified in the jack and horse mackerel family, Carangidae. The torpedo scad is distributed throughout the tropical Indo-Pacific region, ranging from South Africa in the west to Tonga in the east, extending to Japan in the north and Australia in south. It is a schooling pelagic fish which occupies the surface layers of both inshore and offshore oceanic waters. The torpedo scad is easily identified by both its 'torpedo' shaped body and a series of detached finlets at the rear of both the dorsal and anal fins. The largest recorded individual was 80 cm long and weighed 4 kg, although it is more common at lengths less than 40 cm. It is a predatory species, taking a variety of fish, cephalopods and crustaceans by both active and filter feeding. There is a shift in diet as the species grow; however fish is the dominant prey in all size classes. Torpedo scad reach sexual maturity at 22 cm in females and 26.4 cm in males, with spawning occurring between March and July in India, where significant research into larval growth and morphometrics has been carried out.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Torpedo scad”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
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Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 10 records
- February: 18 records
- March: 31 records
- April: 31 records
- May: 27 records
- June: 72 records
- July: 17 records
- August: 12 records
- September: 14 records
- October: 12 records
- November: 35 records
- December: 54 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 5–58 m · Deepest record: 126 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 20–30 °C
Names and classification
- English
- Torpedo scad, Cordyla Scad, finletted mackerel scad, Finny Scad, Hardtail Scad, torpedo scad
Names in 5 more languages
- Spanish
- Macarela Torpedo
- French
- Carangue à bouclier, Comète torpille
- Japanese
- Oniaji, オニアジ
- Thai
- ปลาแข้งไก่
- Simplified Chinese
- 大甲鰺, 鉛灰裸胸鰺
Other scientific names: Caranx rottleri, Citula plumbea, Magalaspis cordyla, Megalapsis cordyla, Megalaspis cordylaa, Scomber cordyla, Scomber rottleri
Similar species
Giant trevallyCaranx ignobilis
Bluefin trevallyCaranx melampygus
Bigeye trevallyCaranx sexfasciatus
Mackerel scadDecapterus macarellus
Indian scadDecapterus russelli
Rainbow runnerElagatis bipinnulata
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 1,512 open-data records from 1902 to 2023.
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