Horse-eye jack (Caranx latus) is a saltwater, freshwater, brackish species recorded in the United States. It is mainly found over reef, at depths of 0–140 m.
Scientific name: Caranx latus · Water: Saltwater, Freshwater, Brackish
Size: up to 101 cm
The horse-eye jack is a pelagic carangid that schools, usually around offshore reefs, and it may penetrate brackish water and ascend rivers, recorded from the surface down to 140 m. Its range is the western Atlantic, from New Jersey, Bermuda and the northern Gulf of Mexico to São Paulo in Brazil, with St. Paul's Rocks, Ascension Island and two confirmed records from the Gulf of Guinea in the eastern Atlantic. Juveniles are found along the shores of sandy beaches and over muddy bottoms. Adults feed on fishes, shrimps and other invertebrates and often approach divers; the eggs are pelagic. Maximum length is about 101 cm fork length, commonly about 60 cm total length, and it matures at about 37 cm. It is a minor commercial species, a gamefish and a commercial aquarium fish. Fishing vulnerability is high at 58 of 100 and resilience medium, and the price category is high. IUCN lists it as least concern.
Caution: large individuals carry a ciguatera risk. Heat, cold and marinating do not remove the toxin, which concentrates in the liver, roe and head, so avoid eating those parts. Seek medical help if numbness, tingling or a reversed sense of hot and cold follows a meal.
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