Description
The body of the Atlantic bluefin tuna is rhomboidal in profile and robust. The head is conical and the mouth rather large. The head contains a "pineal window" that allows the fish to navigate over its multiple thousands of mile range. The color is dark blue above and gray below with a gold coruscation covering the body and bright yellow caudal finlets. Bluefin tuna can be distinguished from other family members by the relatively short length of their pectoral fins. Their livers have a unique characteristic in that they are covered with blood vessels (striated). In other tunas with short pectoral fins, such vessels are either not present or present in small numbers along the edges.
Fully mature adult specimens average 2–2.5 m (6.6–8.2 ft) long and weigh around 225–250 kg (500–550 lb). The species can reach a maximum length of almost 4.6 m (15 ft). The largest recorded specimen taken under International Game Fish Association rules was caught off Nova Scotia, an area renowned for huge Atlantic bluefin, and weighed 679 kg (1,500 lb). The longest contest between man and tuna fish occurred near Liverpool, Nova Scotia in 1934, when six men taking turns fought a 361 kg (800 lb) tuna for sixty-two hours. Both the Smithsonian Institute and the National Marine Fish Service in North America have accepted that this species can weigh up to 910 kg (2,000 lb), though further details are lacking.
Atlantic bluefin tuna reach maturity relatively quickly. In a survey that included specimens up to 2.55 m (8.4 ft) in length and 247 kg (540 lb) in weight, none was believed to be older than 15 years. However, very large specimens may be up to 50 years old.
The bluefin possesses enormous muscular strength, which it channels through a pair of tendons to its lunate shaped caudal fin for propulsion. In contrast to many other fish, the body stays rigid while the tail flicks back and forth, increasing stroke efficiency.
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