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Fish of the NT
NT Fish - Jewfish
NT Fish - Jewfish
Black Jewfish
It takes a patient, determined angler and a good pair of gloves to land a large jewfish. Not only are they fun to catch but they are great to eat, and therefore highly prized amongst NT commercial and recreational anglers.
The black jewfish is a member of the Sciaenidae family, which is also known worldwide as croaker or drum due to the distinct drumming noise it makes. P. diacanthus is a migratory species found in turbid coastal waters throughout the Indo-West Pacific (India, Ceylon, Burma, Malay Peninsula, Thailand, Indonesia, Northern Australia, the Philippines, China and Japan). It inhabits waters to 60m and is an opportunistic carnivore, preying on crustaceans, octopus, squid and fish found near the bottom. Southern species of jewfish are commonly known as mulloway. The black jewfish is silvery green colour on capture and changes to a black colour on death. Numerous small dark spots are often present on the upper half of body, tail and caudal fin. These spots are less visible and even absent on larger fish.
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