Trachinotus goodei

Trachinotus goodei
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Carangiformes
Family:	Carangidae
Genus:	Trachinotus
Species:	T. goodei
Binomial name
Trachinotus goodei D. S. Jordan & Evermann, 1896

Trachinotus goodei, the palometa, is an ocean-going game fish of the family Carangidae. Other common names include banner pompano, camade fish, cobbler, gafftopsail, great pompano, joefish, longfin pompano, old wife, sand mackerel, streamers jack, wireback.^{[2] [1]} This fish is native to the western Atlantic Ocean from Massachusetts to Bermuda to Argentina. It can be found in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.^[3]

The specific name of this fish honors the American ichthyologist George Brown Goode (1851-1896), who was assistant secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and who was the first to note the presence of this species in the waters of the United States.^[4]

The palometa is best recognized by its elongated dorsal and anal fins with dark anterior lobes.^[5] The dorsal fin usually has seven or eight spines and 19-20 soft rays, while the anal fin has two or three spines and 16-18 soft rays.^[3]

Its coloration varies from gray to blue-green on the top of its head, and the sides are silver with four narrow, vertical bars. A faint fifth bar shows near the base of the tail. The breast usually has an orange tinge. The tail has no scutes, unlike many members of its family.^[6]

The largest known palometa was 50 cm (1 ft 8 in) long.^[7] The heaviest was 560 g (1 lb 4 oz).^[8]

The palometa prefers clear, tropical water in sandy shores and bays. It may school above coral reefs.^[6]

Little is known about the reproduction of the palometa. It is thought to spawn far offshore during all seasons except winter.^[6] Juveniles have shown high growth rates in maricultural experiments.^[9]

In the wild, the palometa eats worms, insect pupae, and smaller fish.^[3]

• 
  A palometa seen off the coast of Bonaire
• 
  Another palometa, swimming with a sergeant major (Abudefduf saxatilis)

Though there have been reports of ciguatera poisoning,^[10] the palometa is considered primarily a game fish. Although it is used in aquaculture,^[3] few are captured for the aquarium trade. In a review of aquarium fish from Ceará in Brazil, only two palometa were exported between 1995 and 2000, both from Fortaleza.^[11] It is rarely used for any other purpose than as a gamefish.

Bathers cooling off in the Parana River in Rosario, 300 kilometres (190 mi) north of Buenos Aires, Argentina on Christmas Day 2013 were attacked by a fish they called 'palometa'. Up to 70 people were bitten, some lost toes and fingers.^[12] The actual species claimed to be responsible for the attack was a type of piranha,^[13] as 'palometa' is a general common name used for many species of serrasalmids (including several piranhas) in South America.^[14][15]

Palometa, Trachinotus goodei, have been farm raised from eggs by Proaquatix,^[16] a fish farm in Florida. They are of commercial interest as an ornamental species for large displays and public aquariums.

• Florida pompano
• Permit
• George Brown Goode

• Photos of Trachinotus goodei on Sealife Collection