Blue Runner

Credit: Illustration by Diane Rome Peebles

Family Carangidae

Description: color light olive to bluish green above, silvery gray to golden below; frequently black spot on operculum; readily distinguished from crevalle jack by lack of a dark blotch on the pectoral fin; tail tips blackish

Similar fish: bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix; other Caranx

Where found: juveniles found offshore; adult nearshore in schools, but sometimes ranging inshore as well

Size: usually less than 1 pound (11 inches)

Remarks: matures by 9 to 10 inches; spawns offshore from January through August; young form schools associated with floating objects, and have been observed living inside the bell of jellyfish; adults feed on fish, shrimp, and squid