JACKS
CARANGIDAE
Rainbow Runner
Elagatis bipinnulata
    Ecological Descriptors
Habitat Size (cm) Diet Behaviour Sex 
Pel (Co) 90 (max 180) Pisc, Cru Sh F
 
 
Description:
Head more
pointed and body more elongated compared to other Jacks. Silvery-yellow, dark olive green to blue above and white below. Two narrow light blue or bluish-white stripes along sides, with a broader olive or yellow stripe between them. The fins have an olive or yellow tint. Rear dorsal and anal fins have a serrated appearance (finlets).

Ecology
Adults are found in oceanic and coastal waters, generally near the surface over reefs, sometimes close to land over rock and coral reef systems, as well as far offshore often around floating logs or other debris.  They are easily attracted to fish-attracting devices (FADs), floating buoy-type structures. The species has been shown to occupy a water zone outside of the FADs up to 12 m deep and 10 m wide, treating them as if they were stationary objects.

May form large schools . Depth range 0 - 150 m (0-300ft) , but usually 2 - 10 m (6-30ft). They feed on invertebrates, mainly on larger crustaceans of the zooplankton and small fishes .

Life Cycle:
Pelagic spawner thats eggs hatch into pelagic larvae. Females exhibit five different maturation stages: immature, maturing, mature, spent and resting, a predominance fish mature in January to May corresponding to spawnin seasons. The highest gonad index (GI) values were also observed during this period, ranging from 7.7 to 55. Mean sexual maturity size for females was estimated at 65 cm (FL). The species exhibited total spawning, with two synchronous groups. Testicles are similar making them impossible to differentiate sexual maturation stages.
Rainbow Runner
(C) Kevin Bryant
478
Rainbow Runner