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Megalops atlanticus Valenciennes, 1847

Tarpon
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
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Megalops atlanticus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Megalops atlanticus (Tarpon)
Megalops atlanticus
Picture by Furlan, B.


Dominican Republic country information

Common names: Sábalo
Occurrence: native
Salinity: brackish
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: live export: yes;
Comments:
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/dr.html
National Fisheries Authority: ttp://www.cep.unep.org/rep_dom/Rep_Dom.htm#SEA-PESQUERO
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Whitehead, P.J.P. and R. Vergara R., 1978
National Database:

Common names from other countries

Classification / Names Nomi Comuni | Sinonimi | Catalog of Fishes(Genere, Specie) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

> Elopiformes (Tarpons and tenpounders) > Megalopidae (Tarpons)
Etymology: Megalops: Greek, megas, megalos = great + Greek, ops = appearance (Ref. 45335).
  More on author: Valenciennes.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecologia

marino; acqua dolce; salmastro associati a barriera corallina; amfidromo (Ref. 51243); distribuzione batimetrica 0 - 40 m (Ref. 3789), usually 0 - 15 m (Ref. 42064).   Subtropical; 10°C - 40°C (Ref. 93687); 49°N - 44°S, 99°W - 14°E (Ref. 55254)

Distribuzione Stati | Aree FAO | Ecosystems | Presenze | Point map | Introduzioni | Faunafri

Atlantic Ocean: from Nova Scotia, Bermuda and southward to Brazil in western Atlantic Ocean (Ref. 3234, 4446), where it it also found throughout the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean (Ref. 26938); from Mauritania to Angola in eastern Atlantic Ocean (Ref. 2845, 3234, 4446, 81266); with exceptional records in Portugal, Azores and Atlantic coast of southern France (Ref. 3234, 4446). Crossed the Panama canal and was caught at Coiba Island in the Pacific Ocean (Ref. 4446).

Length at first maturity / Size / Peso / Age

Maturity: Lm 160.0, range 130 - 128.5 cm
Max length : 250 cm TL maschio/sesso non determinato; (Ref. 2683); common length : 130 cm TL maschio/sesso non determinato; (Ref. 2683); peso massimo pubblicato: 161.0 kg (Ref. 26340); Età massima riportata: 55 anni (Ref. 9975)

Short description Chiavi di identificazione | Morfologia | Morfometria

Spine dorsali (totale) : 0; Raggi dorsali molli (totale) : 13 - 16; Spine anali: 0; Raggi anali molli: 22 - 25; Vertebre: 53 - 57. Diagnosis: It is characterized by the anterior position of pelvic fin insertions in relation to dorsal-fin origin, and by some morphometric counts: 13-16 dorsal-fin rays, 40-48 lateral-line scales and 53-57 vertebrae (Ref. 2845, 81266).

Biologia     Glossario (es. epibenthic)

Obligate air-breathing (Ref. 126274); Inhabit coastal waters, bays, estuaries, mangrove-lined lagoons, and rivers (Ref. 3789, 27188). Often found in river mouths and bays, entering fresh water (Ref. 27227). Lower depth limit at 40m (Ref. 118621). Large schools may frequent particular spots for years (Ref. 9710). Feed on fishes like sardines, anchovies, Mugilidae, Centropomus, Cichlidae (mainly those forming schools) and crabs (Ref. 3789, 27188). The swim bladder, attached to the esophagus, can be filled directly with air and permits the fish to live in oxygen-poor waters. Has high fecundity, a 203 cm female is estimated to produce over 12 million eggs (Ref. 10863). Spawn in waters which can be temporarily isolated from the open sea (Ref. 27188). Transparent leptocephalus larvae migrate into estuaries (Ref. 57533). Famous for its spectacular leaps when hooked. Marketed fresh or salted (Ref. 3789). Large scales are used in ornamental work and in preparation of artificial pearls (Ref. 3789). Used to be cultured commercially in Colombia (Ref. 7306). Highly appreciated by sport fishers. The flesh is also highly appreciated despite its being bony (Ref. 27188). The world record for hook and line is 283 lbs. from Lake Maricaibo, Venezuela (Ref. 13442).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Riproduzione | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larve

Some populations may complete life cycle in freshwater, e.g. Lake Nicaragua in Central America, and Deep Lake in Florida (Ref. 4639).

Main reference Upload your references | Bibliografia | Coordinatore | Collaboratori

Hureau, J.-C., 1984. Megalopidae. p. 226-227. In P.J.P. Whitehead, M.-L. Bauchot, J.-C. Hureau, J. Nielsen and E. Tortonese (eds.) Fishes of the north-eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean. UNESCO, Paris. Vol. 1. (Ref. 3234)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Vulnerabile, vedi Lista Rossa IUCN (VU) (A2bd); Date assessed: 12 June 2018

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Reports of ciguatera poisoning (Ref. 31172)




Human uses

Pesca: commerciale; Acquacoltura: commerciale; Pesce da pesca sportiva: si; Acquario: Acquari pubblici
FAO(pesca: production; publication : search) | FishSource | Sea Around Us

Informazioni ulteriori

Trophic ecology
Prede
Diet compositions
Food consumptions
Food rations
Predatori
Ecology
Ecologia
Home ranges
Population dynamics
Growths
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversions
Recruitments
Abundances
Life cycle
Riproduzione
Maturities
Fecundities
Spawnings
Spawning aggregations
Egg(s)
Egg developments
Larve
Dinamica popolazioni larvali
Distribution
Stati
Aree FAO
Ecosystems
Presenze
Introduzioni
BRUVS - Videos
Anatomy
Gill areas
Cervelli
Otoliths
Physiology
Body compositions
Nutrients
Oxygen consumptions
Swimming type
Swimming speeds
Visual pigment(s)
Suoni dei Pesci
Diseases / Parasites
Toxicities (LC50s)
Genetics
Genetica
Electrophoreses
Heritabilities
Human related
Aquaculture systems
Profili di acquacoltura
Varietà
Ciguatera cases
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
Collaboratori
References
Bibliografia

Strumenti

Special reports

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Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 19.6 - 28, mean 27 (based on 1409 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 1.0020   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01023 (0.00419 - 0.02501), b=3.02 (2.81 - 3.23), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  4.5   ±0.0 se; based on diet studies.
Resilienza (Ref. 120179):  Basso, tempo minimo di raddoppiamento della popolazione 4.5 - 14 anni (K=0.07-0.10; tmax=55; Fec>1 million).
Prior r = 0.34, 95% CL = 0.22 - 0.51, Based on 1 data-limited stock assessment.
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Very high vulnerability (76 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref. 125649):  High to very high vulnerability (67 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Medium.