Yellow jack

The yellow jack (Caranx bartholomaei), also known as coolihoo, is a species of marine fish in the jack family, Carangidae. It is one of only two representatives of its genus present in the Atlantic Ocean, inhabiting waters off the east coast of the Americas from Massachusetts in the north to Brazil in the south, as well as a number of offshore islands. The yellow jack can be distinguished from closely related species by the length of the jaw, as well as counts of the rays in the fins. It is a fairly large fish, growing to a recorded maximum length of 1 metre (39 in), and a weight of at least 14 kilograms (31 lb). Yellow jack inhabit reefs, moving either individually or in schools and are predatory fish which primarily take other small fish. Studies in the Caribbean suggest the species reaches sexual maturity between 23 and 32 centimetres (9.1 and 12.6 in), and spawns in offshore waters from February to October. Yellow jack are of minor economic importance, taken by both hook and net methods, and are considered to be fair table fish. They are often caught by boat anglers, although are overlooked for their larger relatives.

Distribution

The yellow jack is distributed throughout the tropical to subtropical western Atlantic Ocean, ranging on the coast of America from Massachusetts to Maceio, Brazil. The species range includes hundreds of offshore islands in the eastern Atlantic, including Bermuda, the Bahamas, the West Indies and throughout the Caribbean Sea. Along with the bar jack, C. ruber, it is only one of two species formerly in Carangoides present in the Atlantic, with all others having Indo-Pacific distributions.

it also can be found in the Libyan coast (in the Mediterranean sea). The yellow jack is occasionally found in inshore coastal waters, but prefers offshore reefs and islands, or open marine waters over the continental shelf. Whilst not often seen in shallow waters near the American continent, yellow jack are commonly seen in the sandy shallows of a number of Caribbean islands foraging with other species.