Redtail Scad

Interesting Info

• The Redtail Scad is a small, fast schooling fish named for the reddish tinge on its forked tail.
• It grows up to about 45 cm (17 in), though most individuals are 20–30 cm (8–12 in) long.
• In Australia it is recorded from tropical northern waters, particularly the Great Barrier Reef, Coral Sea, and offshore reefs of Queensland and Western Australia.
• Globally it is distributed across the Indo–West Pacific, from East Africa and the Red Sea through Southeast Asia, the Philippines, Japan, Papua New Guinea, and into the western Pacific Islands.
• Redtail Scad are slim and silvery with a bluish back, a narrow yellow stripe down the flank, and the distinctive reddish tail that gives them their name.
• They form large schools in coastal waters, often mixing with other scad species.
• Juveniles typically inhabit lagoons, sandy bays, and nearshore waters before moving offshore as they mature.
• Their diet is made up of plankton, small crustaceans, and tiny fish, which they feed on while swimming in tight schools.
• Spawning takes place offshore, with eggs and larvae drifting with ocean currents before juveniles settle in shallow nurseries.
• Redtail Scad are short-lived, usually surviving only 3–4 years.
• They are an important food source for larger predatory fish such as tuna and mackerel.
• Divers and snorkellers may spot their shimmering schools flashing in unison near reef edges.