Pseudocaranx dentex
Silvery blue runner with a yellow stripe and a dark spot on the gill cover, which travels in schools near the bottom, along rocks and shoals. Good fighter on light gear and highly prized at the table.
Also called: garapoá, white trevally, silver trevally
The garapoá is a spindle-shaped carangid that lives in schools over the shelf, usually near hard bottoms and reefs, but also in bays and estuaries. In the western Atlantic it ranges from North Carolina and Bermuda to southern Brazil; FishBase also extends it to the Mediterranean, the eastern Atlantic islands and the Indo-Pacific, where the taxonomy of the group is debated. Juveniles use estuaries, bays and the shallow shelf; adults form schools near the bottom and also in midwater and at the surface. They eat plankton, which they filter by swimming with their mouths open or suck in, and bottom invertebrates. FishBase gives up to 122 cm and 18.1 kg for the species across its entire range, with the common size around 40 cm. It is a commercial, sport and aquaculture fish in Japan, and ranks among the best table fish.
Spindle-shaped, slightly flattened body, blue-green on top and silvery white below, with a yellow band along the middle of the flank and a diffuse dark spot on the gill cover. The straight part of the lateral line has a row of scutes (bony scales), and the tail is deeply forked. It looks like the jacks (Caranx); the yellow flank band, the diffuse gill-cover spot and the habit of schooling near the bottom help tell it apart.
Loading the next 7 days…
Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
FishBase places the species, in the western Atlantic, from North Carolina and Bermuda to southern Brazil. In Brazil, the app associates it with the Southeast and South coasts, where the water is cooler. FishBase includes Mexico in the species' country list.
Habitat: Schools over hard bottoms, shoals and rocky areas of the shelf, usually at 10 to 25 m; juveniles in estuaries, bays and shallow shelf waters.
coast
Prefers cooler water: in the Southeast and South it tends to show up best from autumn to winter, when the water cools. In summer it moves to deeper bottoms.
Daytime, with peaks at dawn and dusk. Active by day, with most movement at dawn and late afternoon.
Tolerates colder water than other blue runners; strong summer heat pushes it deeper.
Not very sensitive.
Small effect; large tides move the bait on the bottom more.
Fresh, muddy runoff water drives the school out of the bays.
Not applicable at sea.
Wary school near the bottom: the engine running overhead makes the fish rise or move off.
Rough seas make it hard to keep the boat over the rock.
With the current running, the school stays at the corner of the rock, feeding on what the water brings.
Usually 10 to 25 m; reaches more than 200 m according to FishBase.
lures
natural baits
accessories
Locate the school on the sounder near the rock and let the bait drop to the bottom; at the first fish, the school usually rises and keeps biting.
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
Conservation: Not on the Brazilian national list (Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667/2026). We found no specific minimum size or federal closed season for the species.
In recreational fishing in Mexican federal waters, each angler may keep up to 10 marine fish per day, no more than 5 of the same species. The garapoá has no limit of its own in the rule. Fish over the limit go back into the water alive, and a retained fish may not be sold. Anyone fishing from a boat needs a permit from Conapesca.
Handles release well if done quickly: wet hands, pliers to remove the hook, and release it head first, facing down. Fish brought up from deep water may arrive with a swollen swim bladder.
White, firm and highly prized flesh; baked whole, over charcoal or in steaks. FishBase lists it among the best table fish and reports that it is sold fresh and farmed in Japan.
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.0138, b = 2.96; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
—
The season weights (months), the time of day and the sensitivities (cold, pressure, moon, wind, rain, tide, strong light, murky water and noise) are the app's editorial estimates, based on the literature below and on field experience from anglers and guides. They are not official data or measurements made for this species and may vary by region and year. Closed seasons and legal rules appear in the rules section, with the rule and link. Common sizes and weights are ranges around the common length reported by FishBase, with the weight calculated from the length-weight relationship.
Your location is saved only on this device and feeds the forecast, the map and the "today" on the home page.
