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Scomberoides lysan

Rai

Leatherback

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Adult (Indonesia)	23KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Leatherback, Doublespotted Queenfish, Blacktip Queenfish, Lae / Lai, Leatherback; German Doppelpunkt-Makrele; French Maquereau Chevalier, Carangue Leurre, Sauteur Sabre

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Rai (RR AT MK MT AK PL TW), Ra‘i (MG), Lai (TS PK); Other Polynesian - Rai (TAH), Kohioa (TUA), Aiai / Pakakai (MQA), Rai-rai (MVA)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE e.Africa - Marquesas, Hawai‘i; n. to s.Japan; s. to New Caledonia

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; PLUS: Common in N.Group; rare in S.Group.; Marine, near-shore

KEY FEATURES: To 70cm SL, Depth 3.3 in SL. Slender, blue-grey above and silvery-white or yellowish below. Without scutes; Tail deeply forked; 2nd Dorsal and Anal anteriorly lobed, positeriorly with finlets without a membrane on outer 25-50%; Tail lobes dark, and 2ND DORSAL LOBE WITH ABRUPTLY DARK OUTER SECTION. ADULTS WITH 6-8 PAIRS OF DUSKY BLOTCHES ABOVE AND BELOW LATERAL LINE. The leathery skin has needlelike scales, and the Dorsal and Anal spines can inflict a painful sting.

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
	P				^P	P

Northern Group: Present
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
	P		P

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Scomberoides lysan (Forsskål, 1775)
SYNONYMS: Scomber lysan [O]; LIchia lysan; Chorinemus lysan

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CHORDATA; GNATHOSTOMATA (Jawed Vertebrates); PISCES; OSTEICHTHYES; Perciformes; Percoidei; Percoidea; CARANGIDAE, Scomberoidinae

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Cooks: Smith-Vaniz 1984, Carangidae. in FAO Species ID sheets. Area 51 vol.1. Aitutaki: field-specimen, NBSAP School, 12/2000, ID GM. Palmerston: specimen photo Sims (Sims88) also in (Preston95). Manihiki: specimen photo Sims, head BPBM (Sims88). Pukapuka: fieldspecimen+photo, 2/2004, G.McCormack with ID as Scomberoides lysan.

References:
Special Reference: Smith-Vaniz 1984, Carangidae. in FAO Species ID sheets. Area 51 vol.1.

text p.132 Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
plate 47a Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
p.165 Randall et al. (1990) Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef....
p.251 Burgess et al. (1988) Atlas of Marine Aquarium Fishes (TFH)
plate 42-08 Lieske & Myers (1996) Coral Reef Fishes
plate 39-06 Allen (1997) Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia....
Species No. 389 Munro (1967) Fishes of New Guinea

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zupM06a, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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