Ken Schultz's Field Guide to Saltwater Fish - Macaw Pets store

Jack, Horse-eye
Caranx latus
OTHER NAMES
big-eye jack, goggle-eye,
horse-eye trevally; French:
carange moyole;
Portuguese: guarajuba;
Spanish: jurel, jurel ojo
gordo, ojón, xurel.
Distribution. In the western
Atlantic, horse-eye jacks
occur from New Jersey and
Bermuda throughout the
northern Gulf of Mexico to
Río de Janeiro in Brazil.
Habitat. Horse-eye jacks
are most common around
islands and offshore,
although they can tolerate
brackish waters and may
ascend rivers. Adults prefer
open water and may be
found over reefs, whereas
young are usually found
along sandy shores and
over muddy bottoms.
Schooling in small to large
groups at depths of up to
60 feet, horse-eye jacks may
mix with crevalle jacks.
114 Jack, Horse-eye
Like other jack species, the horse-eye is a member of the
Carangidae family and a strong-fighting fish suitable for
light-tackle angling. Unlike some jacks, it is not highly
esteemed as a food fish, although the quality of horse-eye
jack meat can be improved by cutting off the tail and bleeding
the fish directly after it is caught. This and other jacks
have been implicated in cases of ciguatera poisoning.
Identification. The horse-eye jack is silvery, with yellow
tail fins and usually dark edges on the dorsal and the upper
tail fin. There is often a small black spot at the upper end of
the gill cover, and it usually has blackish scutes. The body is
compressed, and the entire chest is scaly. There are 20 to 22
soft rays in the dorsal fin and 14 to 18 gill rakers on the
lower limb of the first arch. The horse-eye jack is similar in
shape to the crevalle jack, although it has a less steep forehead
and is either lacking the dark blotch at the base of the
pectoral fins of the crevalle jack, or the blotch is more
poorly defined. It can also be distinguished by its scales,
which the crevalle jack lacks except for a small patch.
Size. This species is commonly found up to 30 inches and
10 pounds. The all-tackle world record is 24 pounds, 8
ounces.
Food and feeding habits. Horse-eye jacks feed on fish,
shrimp, crabs, and other invertebrates.