Vertebrate Zoology

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tuna

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

tuna or tunny, game and food fishes, the largest members of the family Scombridae ( mackerel family) and closely related to the albacore and bonito. They have streamlined bodies with two fins, and five or more finlets on the back. The body is very narrow in the tail region, and the tail is deeply forked.

The most important commercially of the group called little tunnies is the little tuna, or false albacore, Euthynnus alleteraturs, which averages 10 lb (4.5 kg) and is found in open Atlantic waters north to Cape Cod. The oceanic bonito, or skipjack, Katsuwonus pelamis, is a warm-water fish reaching 20 lb (9 kg) in weight. The albacore, or long-finned tuna, Thunnus alalunga (up to 60 lb/27 kg), is found off the Pacific coast of the United States and in the Mediterranean; its flesh is marketed as "whitemeat tuna." The northern bluefin tuna, T. thynnus, the largest of the great tunnies and the giant of bony fishes, averages 200 to 500 lb (90–225 kg) with adults sometimes reaching 14 ft (427 cm) and 3/4 tons (680 kg). The bluefin, also called horse, or jack, mackerel, is cosmopolitan in distribution; in the Atlantic, schools of bluefins travel as far N as Nova Scotia in the spring and summer. It is highly prized as a sport fish as well as by commerce. The yellowfin tuna, T. albacares, is smaller (125 lb/56 kg) and more southerly in range.

Tuna fisheries have been important commercially in Europe for centuries and are the backbone of a major canning industry on both coasts of North America. The tuna fishery is controlled by international agreements, but catch limits and other regulations have not been adhered to. As a result, some tuna fisheries have been overfished, and the albacore, bluefin, yellowfin, and other species are considered threatened. Another major marine conservation problem has been the use of huge drift nets to capture tuna, because the nets also trap and kill thousands of seals, dolphins, whales, and sea birds in the process. Although nets longer than 1.5 mi (2.4 km) have been banned worldwide, nets up to 20 mi (32 km) are still commonly used in defiance of the ban in parts of the world.

Tunas are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Osteichthyes, order Perciformes, family Scombridae.

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tuna

The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea | 2006 | Copyright

tuna are fast-swimming predacious fish of the open ocean belonging to the family Scombridae. They are important both for commercial fisheries and as sports fish. They are caught by purse seine nets, long-lining, and trolling, and like many commercial species are overfished. The thirteen species of true tunas include tunny (Thunnus maccoyii), albacore (T. alalunga), big-eye (T. obesus), yellow-fin (T. alacares), and black-fin tunas (T. atlanticus) and there are numerous other smaller tuna-like bonitos (Katsuwonus sp. and Sarda sp.) and Spanish mackerels (Scoberomorus sp.). The largest is the blue-fin (Thunnus thynnus), which in twenty years grows to a length of over 3 metres (10 ft) and a weight of 680 kilograms (1,500 lbs). Tracking devices have shown that a large blue-fin spends most of its time in the upper 30 metres (100 ft), but makes frequent excursions to depths of 300 metres (1,000 ft). Its average swimming speed is around 6 kph (4 mph), but it can achieve bursts of 20–30 kph (12–19 mph). The fastest recorded burst was 70 kph (43.4 mph). A tuna can achieve such fast speeds because its body is highly streamlined but also because, like marlin, it has red muscle that keeps its body 10 °C (50 °F) warmer than the surrounding sea water. Blue-fin undertake long migrations. Fish tagged off the east coast of the USA have been recaptured off Africa and in the Mediterranean. Commercially large tunas demand high prices, because of the Japanese passion for eating the flesh raw in sushi and sashimi. However, eat them in moderation because, being top predators, they accumulate high concentrations of pollutants such as mercury and organohalogens in their bodies. See also environmental issues; pollution.

M. V. Angel

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tuna

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

tu·na¹ / ˈt(y)oōnə/ • n. (pl. same or tunas ) a large and active predatory schooling fish (Thunnus and other genera) of the mackerel family. Found in warm seas, it is extensively fished commercially and is popular as a game fish. ∎ (also tuna fish) the flesh of this fish as food, usually canned. tu·na² • n. 1. the edible fruit of a prickly pear cactus. 2. a cactus that produces such fruit, in particular Opuntia tuna of Central America and the Caribbean.

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tuna

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Copyright

tuna (tunny) Marine fish related to mackerel, found in tropical and temperate seas. An important commercial fish, it has a blue-black and silvery streamlined body with a large, deeply divided tail. Length: to 4.3m (14ft); weight: to 810kg (1800lb).

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tuna

A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition | 2005 | | Copyright

tuna See prickly pear.

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DAVID A. BENDER. "tuna." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

DAVID A. BENDER. "tuna." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-tuna.html

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tuna

A Dictionary of Zoology | 1999 | | Copyright

tuna See SCOMBRIDAE.

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MICHAEL ALLABY. "tuna." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL ALLABY. "tuna." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-tuna.html

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tuna

Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes | 2007 | Copyright

tuna •belladonna, Connor, donna, goner, gonna, honour (US honor), Maradona, Mashona, O'Connor, Shona, wanna •corner, fauna, forewarner, Lorna, Morna, mourner, sauna, scorner, suborner, warner •softener • Faulkner •downer, uptowner •sundowner •Arizona, Barcelona, boner, condoner, corona, Cremona, Desdemona, donor, Fiona, groaner, Iona, Jonah, kroner, Leona, loaner, loner, moaner, Mona, owner, Pamplona, persona, postponer, Ramona, stoner, toner, Valona, Verona, Winona •landowner • homeowner • shipowner •coiner, joiner, purloiner •crooner, harpooner, lacuna, lacunar, lampooner, Luna, lunar, mizuna, Oona, oppugner, Poona, pruner, puna, schooner, spooner, Tristan da Cunha, tuna, tuner, Una, vicuña, yokozuna •honeymooner • Sunna • Brookner •koruna

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