This is a picture of our very own Indo Pacific Tarpon, this is commonly sold at magallanes/manalili sidewalk. In the aquarium trade of cebu, this fish is considered economicaly worthless, but in the UK, some hobbiest are quite interested in this particular species and it is priced at 25 pounds each. Some UK conservationists aren't very happy about the imports since they do not want any incident of careless introduction of the species to the wild, since the fish can grow to a very large size. Introductions would have a great impact to their local biodiversity.
COMMON NAME:
Indo Pacific Tarpon
MAGALLANES/ MANALILI NAME:
Silver skin, Silver scale and Silver shark
LOCAL NAMES:
Buan buan, Abulong, Buan-buan, Bulan-bulan, Bulgan, Buobuan,Buyan-buyan, Hutik, Mulan-bulan, Salongsong, Silag and Tewal
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Megalops cyprinoides
ORIGIN:
Found in marine, brackish and freshwater from the Red Sea to Africa,The PHILIPPINES, India, Madagascar, Taiwan, Japan and Australia. Juveniles of this species are found quite far inland in freshwater (including the Shire River, a tributary to Lake Malawi) but the species is said to breed at sea.
Size: Ridiculously large at up to 150cm/60" and around 18kg. Tarpons are popular big game fish in the tropics.
DIET:
Primarily a piscivore - hence the enormous mouth. Stomach analyses have shown that they also consume crustaceans, such as shrimps, and terrestrial insects. They're not particularly fussy feeders in the aquarium.
NOTES:
Tarpon are members of the Megalopidae family and are in the Elopiformes order. Since they're often found in swampy areas, these fish have evolved an auxilliary air breathing organ and may gulp air from the surface. They can also tolerate very high salinities.
IDENTIFICATION:
There are only two species of Megalops: cyprinoides and atlanticus. M. cyprinoides has 16-21 branched dorsal rays, 23-31 branched anal rays and nine or more pelvic rays. M. atlanticus has 22-25 branched anal rays, 13-16 branched dorsal rays and 37-42 scales in the lateral line series.
This a picture of the Atlantic Tarpon that was caught in Islamorada, florida.