Divefree

Fish

Striped Mullet

Liza tricuspidens

A big grey mullet of Cape and Natal estuaries with an astonishing leap - large fish can clear 2.4 m and cover 12 m in a single jump.

Also known as gestreepte harder

Striped Mullet
Photo: nmalan8 · CC BY-NC 4.0
Typical size
Attains 75 cm
Habitat
Estuaries, Mossel Bay to Kosi

The striped mullet is a large grey mullet with tricuspid teeth bigger than those of most of its relatives. It reaches about 75 cm and is known only from Mossel Bay to the Kosi Estuary.

A spectacular jumper, it leaps with its body held straight and parallel to the water; big fish can rise 2.4 m and cover 12 m in one bound, often repeating the feat - they almost always clear a seine net. Occasionally hooked on prawn or pilchard, they fight magnificently, and the flesh is much esteemed.