Pelagics
Pelagics Family
Todak
'Todak' is the Malay word for a small swordfish, needlefish or garfish - a fish which skims along the surface of the water with its snout in the air. It is a fish that frequently features in Malay myth and legend.
In the Sejarah Melayu is found the well-known story of the swordfish attack on Singapore.
According to Singapore Malay folklore, Tanjong Pagar ('Fenced Headland') in Singapore was where the boy ordered that a stockade of banana trees be erected to embed the 'swordfish' snouts when they charged ashore.In Hong Kong it has increased in commercial importance as a result of the decline of larger-bodied species of grouper and the chocolate hind is now one of the more important species in the Hong Kong fish market
In actual fact, garfish or needlefish, like all ray-finned beloniforms, are capable of making short jumps out of the water at up to 60 km/h (37 mph). Since they swim near the surface, they often leap over the decks of shallow boats rather than going around. This jumping activity is greatly excited by artificial light at night; night fisherman and divers in areas across the Pacific Ocean have been "attacked" by schools of suddenly excited fish diving across the water towards the light source at high speed. Their sharp beaks are capable of inflicting deep puncture wounds, often breaking off inside the victim in the process. For many traditional Pacific Islander communities, who primarily fish on reefs from low boats, these fish represent an even greater risk of injury than sharks.
Compared to other fish in its species, the hound fish has a short and stout beak. It can be found in small groups swimming near the surface of the water and will strike artificial lures.
Like other fishes that live near the water surface, they are usually darker coloured from above, and silvery from below. Thus they are camouflaged from predators both above and below the water.
Barracuda
The long and thin body of the barracuda is designed for speed, and their top speed has been estimated at 36 mph (58 kph).
barracudas have a large mouth containing two sets of teeth. The outer row of small, razor-sharp teeth are for tearing, and the inner set of larger teeth for piercing. These closely set teeth work in tandem to rip into the flesh of their prey. The long needle-like teeth fit into holes in the opposing jaw, which allows the barracuda to fully close its mouth.
Barracudas are naturally inquisitive. Because they hunt mainly by sight, barracudas sometimes attempt to steal fish from spear fishers or approach divers, mistaking the glint of a diving knife as a shiny fish.1 Despite this behavior, barracudas rarely attack humans unprovoked.
Interestingly, ingesting barracuda is considerably more harmful to humans than eating any other fish species. People often become ill from ciguatera fish poisoning after ingesting barracudas, perhaps because the reef fish that barracudas eat themselves consume algae that may contain high levels of the toxin.
Often, when a predator attacks a school, the school will form a confusing ‘tornado’, preventing any one barracuda being fixed upon as prey in the eyes of the predator
Barracuda's age can be determined by counting the rings on the scales
Queenfish
This exciting sport fish falls for live baits, dead baits, fish strips and pilchards or garfish on ganged hooks, as well as various lures and flies. With lures, the emphasis should be on movement and speed, which will excite the queenfish. Fast trolled or rapidly-retrieved sliced chrome lures, poppers, spoons, minnows and saltwater flies are all excellent choices. A wire or heavy monofilament nylon leader is advisable when pursuing queenfish, as their hard, sharp-edged jaws and small teeth can easily damage light nylon fishing line.
queenfish have firm, white meat with an excellent flavour, although tending towards dryness. Smaller specimens are not generally popular because of the very thin fillets and excessive wastage. Queenfish should be bled and iced after capture. The flesh is rather dry to eat.
Most Chinese locals avoid eating this fish because it is believed to be related to a diety - the marks on the queenfish are said to be the fingerprint marks left by the deity. In general, the meat quality isn't as good as other trevallies like diamond trevally or bumpnose trevally. However, it still does make a good dish if cooked with the right recipe.
The Talang queenfish is an important commercial[7] and recreational species throughout much of its range
The all tackle world record stands at 17.89 kg (39 lb 7oz) caught off of Umkomaas, South Africa in 2010.
Longfin Trevally (Sagai)
A popular light tackle game fish. (ajing-soft plastics)(mircro jigging)(sabiki -the best)
A fish that taste really good when prepared with the hong kong steamed method.
Longfin trevally are generally too rare to be a viable target for commercial fisheries, although they are occasionally landed and sold fresh locally. The species is considered good table fare, although it is highly esteemed in Thailand and Cambodia, where the filets are steamed or fried.
Yellowtail Scad (Selar)
The yellowtail scad is an important component of fisheries throughout its range, taken by a number of netting and hook-and-line methods. It is a prized food fish in some regions and is cooked or preserved by a variety of methods.
This is a common fish use for Nasi Lemak
In parts of South East Asia, the yellowtail scad is a highly valued seafood prepared by boiling, steaming and frying. It may also by dried and salted to preserve the flesh
Selar can be easier caught on permanent structure like shipwreck and jetty with a sabiki setup.
Giant Trevally (GT)
A BBC documentary shows footage of GT hunting birds on the surface of the ocean.
It is found throughout the Indo-Pacific region and will grow up to 170 cm and weight at least 35 kg
The Trevally’s method of operation is to use its muscled body to body slam its prey into stunned submission and then quickly eat before another competitor can take away the spoils. The GT also follows Monk Seals and reef sharks to their feeding grounds, and waits for when the shark or seal’s attention is diverted, and then grabs what it can of the other predator’s dinner.
The species' edibility has been rated from poor to excellent by different authors, although numerous cases of ciguatera poisoning have been reported from the species.
A spearfisher in Hawaii broke three ribs when rammed by a giant trevally.
Juvenile turtles and dolphins were reported being found within the stomach contents of larger giant trevally.
The ulua, as the fish is known to Hawaiians, was likened to a fine man and strong warrior, which was the cause of a ban on women eating the species in antiquity.[54] The species was often used in Hawaiian religious rites, and took place of a human sacrifice when none was available. Culturally, the fish was seen as a god,
African Pompano (Ebek)
The large size and good table fair offered by the African pompano have made the species popular with both recreational and commercial fishermen, although different sources rate the flesh quality differently. The species has been implicated in a number of ciguatera cases, suggesting larger fish should probably not be consumed.
The fighting prowess and good table fare attract anglers to the species in many parts of the world, Singaporean usually head to Rompin to target this fish
An interesting fact about the African Pompano is that younger fish boast five extremely long filamentous threads, similar to those of Roosterfish and reminiscing of the venomous medusa jellyfish - this supposedly aids them in defense against predators.
Diamond Tevally (Chermin)
this species is commercially farmed in small numbers in Singapore using aquaculture techniques. These farmed fish generally sell for between 7 and 11 US dollars per kg, as high or higher than other jacks farmed in the country.
The Diamond Tevally is a predatory fish, consuming of a wide range of fishes, small squids, jellyfish and crustaceans.
As with A. ciliaris, the trailing fins of juveniles are thought to resemble jellyfish medusae, causing predators to avoid the young fish. Relatively