Auxis rochei (Risso, 1810)

Edwards, A. J., Gill, A. C. & Abohweyere, P. O., 2003, A revision of F. R. Irvine’s Ghanaian marine fishes in the collections of The Natural History Museum, London, Journal of Natural History 37 (18), pp. 2213-2267 : 2252

Auxis rochei (Risso, 1810)

Irvine name. Auxis thazard (Lacepède) . Misidentification.

Reference material. Accra, June 1931 (Irvine 139)— BMNH 1932.27 .17 (one: 296 mm FL; determined as A. rochei by B. Collette) .

Distribution. Cosmopolitan in warm seas (Collette and Nauen, 1983).

On average about 2500 tonnes of Auxis spp. are caught in the region each year ( FAO, 2000), making them significant fishery species. The two species of Auxis ( A. rochei and A. thazard ) are not too difficult to tell apart if you have fresh material in good condition but old museum material can be difficult to determine.