IDENTIFICATION
This large fish has a deep, robust body which is olive-green in colour, with a darker dorsal surface and white belly. Irregular, small black spots occur on the back and upper sides. The fish has small scales except for two small naked patches in front of the pectoral and pelvic fins.
• DISTRIBUTION Giant kingfish are locally distributed between Port Elizabeth and Mozambique and extend throughout the tropical Indo-Pacific. They are common in shallow coastal areas, around islands and reefs. Juveniles commonly occur in estuaries. The adults are more abundant off KwaZulu-Natal during the summer months. This fish can tolerate a broad salinity range.

FEEDING
This is the largest and most aggressive of the kingfish and is one of the fiercest marine fish predators. About 70% of the diet is fish with the balance being made up of squid and crustaceans.

REPRODUCTION
Giant kingfish mature at 65 cm fork length (approximately three years) and spawning occurs over a widespread area in tropical waters during summer. Males and females congregate in sex-specific shoals and the population is male dominated in KwaZulu-Natal.

GROWTH
This fish reaches 165 cm fork length and lives longer than 10 years. The maximum mass recorded is 55 kg in South Africa and 68 kg in Hawaii.

FISHERY
This is an important recreational game-fish caught by shore anglers, ski-boat anglers and spearfishermen, and is often sought as a trophy. It’s aggressive predatory behaviour makes it vulnerable to overfishing. They have little commercial value.

STATUS
The current status of this fish population is not known and little is known about their early life history. More research is needed to manage this species adequately. The adults may receive some protection in the Maputaland and St Lucia Marine Reserve Sanctuary areas, while juveniles may receive protection within the Lake St Lucia Wilderness Area. Greater protection of juveniles (perhaps through a minimum size limit or protection of estuarine nursery habitats) may be necessary to ensure the future sustainable use of this species.

MANAGEMENT

• Categorised as a recreational species.
  
• Recreational and commercial fishers are allowed 5 per person per day.
• There is no size limit or closed season.
• No sale of this species is permitted.

Rudy van der Elst, Bruce Mann and Vuyiswa Radebe are acknowledged for the scientific information on which this publication is based.