Pilotfish (Naucrates ductor)

Scientific name: Naucrates ductor Linnaeus, 1758

Pilotfish (Naucrates ductor)

The Pilotfish (Naucrates ductor) is a marine fish of the family Carangidae.

Biology

Dorsal spines (total): 5 - 6; Dorsal soft rays (total): 25-29; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 15 - 17. Body elongate, slender, and not strongly compressed; posterior end of upper jaw located at anterior rim of eye; dorsal fin with 4 or 5 spines followed by another spine and 25 to 29 soft rays (IV-V+I 25-29); lateral line without scutes; caudal peduncle with well developed fleshy keels and with dorsal and ventral peduncular fossae. Body dark to pale bluish, with 6-7 broad, dark bars; white tips on caudal lobes and on second dorsal and anal lobes.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Naucrates ductor
Family
Carangidae (Jacks and pompanos)
Order
Perciformes (Perch-like fish)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
70.0
Common length
40.0
Depth range
0–30 m (0–98 ft)
Environment
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 30 m
Climate
Subtropical
Distribution
Circumtropical in tropical seas. Western Atlantic: Nova Scotia, Canada to Argentina. Eastern Atlantic: British Isles (rare vagrant) and Bay of Biscay to Angola, including the Mediterranean and Canary Islands. Eastern Pacific: Vancouver Island (British Columbia, Canada) to the Galapagos Islands. Common throughout the Indian Ocean.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: public aquariums
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)

More other marine fish

See all other marine fish

Sources

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

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