Crevalle Jack

• The sharp bony scutes along the rear of the lateral line form a cutting keel that is best avoided when handling it.
• It hunts in groups, driving shoals of sardines up against the surface, and the din of the attack can be heard tens of metres away.
• The juveniles move into estuaries and river mouths of very low salinity, and even run up stretches of fresh water.
• It hunts in groups and at the surface: schools corner forage fish against the shore and attack them in a noisy rush that can be seen and heard from land.
• Its scutes — hard, keeled modified scales — run along the rear part of the lateral line and form a keel that gives it stability at high speed.
• It produces sounds, with audible grunts when it is taken out of the water.
• Juveniles tolerate very low salinities and use estuaries as nurseries, which makes the species dependent on those habitats.
• It is a game fish highly prized for its strength, although its flesh is considered mediocre and in some areas it is associated with ciguatera.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (fish)

Habitat and environment

Coastal waters, estuaries and bays of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic

Sources consulted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crevalle_jack