Cobia (Rachycentron canadum)

Scientific name: Rachycentron canadum Linnaeus, 1766

Cobia (Rachycentron canadum)

The Cobia (Rachycentron canadum) is a brackish-water fish of the family Rachycentridae.

Biology

Occur in a variety of habitats, over mud, sand and gravel bottoms; over coral reefs, off rocky shores and in mangrove sloughs; inshore around pilings and buoys, and offshore around drifting and stationary objects; occasionally in estuaries. Form small groups and may pursue small pelagic inshore. Feed on crabs, fishes, and squids. Spawn during the warm months in the western Atlantic; eggs and larvae planktonic. Caught in small quantities due to its solitary behavior. Good food fish; marketed fresh, smoked, and frozen. Also caught for sport.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Rachycentron canadum
Family
Rachycentridae (Cobia)
Order
Perciformes (Perch-like fish)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
200
Common length
110
Depth range
0–1200 m (0–3937 ft)
Environment
Marine; brackish; reef-associated; oceanodromous; depth range 0 - 1200 m
Climate
Subtropical
Distribution
Worldwide in tropical and subtropical waters, but absent in the eastern Pacific and the Pacific Plate, except marginally. Western Atlantic: Canada to Bermuda and Massachusetts, USA to Argentina, including the Gulf of Mexico and entire Caribbean. Eastern Atlantic: Morocco to South Africa. Indo-West Pacific: East Africa and Hokkaido, Japan to Australia.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes
Resilience
Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.09-0.22; tm=2-3; tmax=15)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

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