Taxon name
Euthynnus affinis
(Cantor, 1849)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Euthynnus affinis
(Cantor, 1849)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Fishes
Species authority
(Cantor, 1849)
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Least Concern
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
This pelagic, open ocean and coastal species occurs throughout UAE waters. It is taken in fisheries in UAE, but is likely frequently confused with Auxis thazard. Its status in Iranian waters may impact the population that occurs in UAE waters, but this is not currently expected to be driving declines approaching a Near Threatened or threatened level at this time. There are no known major threats; therefore, it is listed as Least Concern in the UAE. It is recommended to improve species-specific fisheries data collection.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
This species occurs throughout UAE waters. Globally, itis widely distributed in the tropical and sub-tropical Indo-West Pacific (Williams 1963, Collette 1984, Randall 1995, Rohit et al. 2012).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This pelagic and oceanodromous species occurs in open waters, but always remains close to the shoreline. It is found to 50 m depth. The young may enter bays and harbours. It forms multi-species schools by size with other scombrid species, comprised of 100 to over 5,000 individuals. It is a highly opportunistic predator that feeds indiscriminately on small fishes, especially clupeoids and atherinids (Griffiths et al. 2009). Its maximum fork length is 100 cm. This species spawns extensively, both geographically and temporally, throughout its range (Schaefer 2001). Size at first maturity off Pakistan was 37.7 cm and longevity was about 9 years (Ahmed et al. 2015). A study conducted in Taiwan reported the age at first maturity to be 2 years (Chiou et al. 2004). Longevity has been estimated at 6 years (Landau 1965). When applying an age at first reproduction of 2 years and longevity of 6 years, its estimated generation length is 4 years based on the following equation recommended by the IUCN Red List methods: Age at first reproduction + (Age at last reproduction -“ age at first reproduction)/2.
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Overexploitation is a potential major threat in the Arabian Gulf, but declines are not expected to be approaching a threatened or Near Threatened level at this time.
Publication
Ralph, G.M., Stump, E., Linardich, C., Bullock, R.W., Carpenter, K.E., Allen D.J., Hilton-Taylor, C., Al Mheiri, R., and Alshamsi, O. 2021. UAE National Red List of Marine Species: Reef-building corals, cartilaginous fishes and select bony fishes. 2021. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
