Pomfret - Black

FULL COLOUR X-RAY

Also known as:

Black batfish

Blue skate

Butterfish

Black pompano

Common Group Name:

Trevallies

Family Name:

Carangidae

Genus Name:

Parastromateus

Species Name:

Parastromateus niger

Dispatch Method:

The eating qualities of these fish can be greatly improved if they are killed immediately by iki jime or a firm knock to the head before placing them in an ice slurry after bleeding.

Fish Description:

This species has a laterally compressed, diamond shaped body, which is largely dark brown/black in colour.
Adults have no pelvic fins, however juveniles have four dark vertical bars and black pelvic fins.
This species feeds mainly on zooplankton.

Fish Distribution:

Black pomfret occur throughout the tropical Indo-Pacific region from the east African coast, to Japan and northern Australia.
Juveniles may enter estuaries while adults frequent coastal waters around inshore rocky and coral reefs.
They are found mainly near the bottom during the day, and near the surface at night swimming on their sides.
Small juveniles are often associated with jellyfish.

Fish Size Common Length:

Common between 25-30 cm (10-12 inches) long, maximum size around 75 cm (2.5 feet) and 4-6 kg (9-12 pounds).

For assistance with identifying fishes, see fishesofaustralia.net.au. For information on size and bag limits, check out the website of your State Fisheries Department.
We thank fishesofaustralia.net.au and Australia's various Fisheries Departments for some of the thumbnail images used to assist with fish identification on this website and its applications, as licensed for use under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia. Thanks also to Michigan State University and Georgia Aquarium for generous donation of xrays of some US fish species.