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Fish

Indian Mackerel

Rastrelliger kanagurta

A fast, streamlined shoaling mackerel of warm KZN waters, silvery with a golden sheen and a dark shoulder spot.

Also known as mackerel, rakerfish

Indian Mackerel
Photo: David R · CC BY-NC 4.0
Typical size
Commonly 20-30 cm
Habitat
Warm inshore and offshore shoals
Depth
Surface to ~50 m

The Indian mackerel is a slender, torpedo-shaped fish with a metallic blue-green back, silver-gold sides and a small dark spot near the upper edge of the gill cover. It has the finlets and forked tail of a true mackerel and swims constantly in tight, fast shoals.

Along the KwaZulu-Natal coast it appears in warm inshore and offshore water, filtering plankton with fine gill rakers and often massing where currents concentrate food. It is a valued baitfish and light-tackle target, and its schools in turn draw larger gamefish such as kingfish and tuna.