Trachinotus goodei

Taxobox
name = Palometa


image_caption =
status= LC
status_system=iucn3.1
status_ref =IUCN 2007. 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. . Downloaded on 23 February 2008. ]
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Perciformes
familia = Carangidae
genus = "Trachinotus"
genus_authority =
species = "T. goodei"
binomial = "Trachinotus goodei"
binomial_authority = Jordan & Evermann, 1896
synonyms =

The Palometa,"Trachinotus goodei", is an ocean-going game fish of the family Carangidae. In the wild, Palometa eat worms, insect pupae, and smaller fish [citeweb
url=http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1011
title=Fishbase.org entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-04-07] .

Description

Palometa are most recognized by their elongated dorsal and anal fins with dark anterior lobes [Smith, C.L., 1997. National Audubon Society field guide to tropical marine fishes of the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York. 720 p.] . The dorsal fin usually has 7-8 spines and 19-20 soft rays, while the anal fin has 2-3 spines and 16-18 soft rays [citeweb
url=http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1011
title=Fishbase.org entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-04-02] . They can have colors from gray to blue-green on the tops of their heads, and have silver-colored sides with four narrow, vertical bars. A Palometa's breast usually has an orange tinge, and the tips of their fins are darkened. The tail has no scutes, unlike many members of its family, and has a faint fifth vertical bar near the base. [citeweb
url=http://myfwc.com/Marine/FishID/pomppalo.html
title=myfwc.com entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-04-06] The largest known Palometa was 50cm long [ Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986. A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p. ] ; The largest known weight of any Palometa is 560g [ IGFA, 2001. Database of IGFA angling records until 2001. IGFA, Fort Lauderdale, USA. ] .

Distribution and habitat

Palometa prefer clear, tropical water of sandy shores and bays. They are also known to swim in small schools above coral reefs [citeweb
url=http://myfwc.com/Marine/FishID/pomppalo.html
title=myfwc.com entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-03-30] at depths up to 12m [citeweb
url=http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1011
title=Fishbase.org entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-04-08] . Palometa are found only in the western Atlantic ocean from Massachusetts, east to Bermuda, south to Argentina. They are also found in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean sea [citeweb
url=http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1011
title=Fishbase.org entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-04-02] .

Reproduction

Little is known about the reproduction of the Palometa. They are thought to spawn far offshore during all seasons, save winter [citeweb
url=http://myfwc.com/Marine/FishID/pomppalo.html
title=myfwc.com entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-03-28] .Young Palometa have shown high growth rates in maricultural experiments. [Journal of Applied Aquaculture Volume: 7 Issue: 2, William M. Cole, James E. Rakocy, Kurt A. Shultz, John A. Hargreaves. ]

Importance to humans

Though there have been reports of ciguatera poisoning [Dammann, A.E., 1969. Study of the fisheries potential of the Virgin Islands. Special Report. Contribution No. 1. Virgin Islands Ecological Research Station. ] , the Palometa is considered primarily a game fish. Although it is used in aquaculture [citeweb
url=http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1011
title=Fishbase.org entry on Palometa
accessdate=2008-04-11] , there are only two known cases of Palometa being traded as aquarium fish between 1995 and 2000. Both reports came from Fortaleza, Ceará (Brazil) [Monteiro-Neto, C., F.E.A. Cunha, M.C. Nottingham, M.E. Araújo, I.L. Rosa and G.M.L. Barros., 2003. Analysis of the marine ornamental fish trade at Ceará State, northeast Brazil. Biodivers. Conserv. 12:1287-1295. ] , but Palometa are rarely used for any other purpose than as a gamefish.

References

External links

*http://myfwc.com/Marine/FishID/pomppalo.html
*http://filaman.ifm-geomar.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1011

ee also

*Florida pompano
*Permit