Thunnus

True tunas
Temporal range: Tertiary–holocene [1][2]
Yellowfin tuna
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scombriformes
Family: Scombridae
Tribe: Thunnini
Genus: Thunnus
South, 1845
Type species
Scomber thynnus
Linnaeus, 1758
Subgenus
Synonyms
  • Albacora Jordan, 1888
  • Germo Jordan, 1888
  • Thynnus Aguilera, 2020
  • Kishinoella Jordan & Hubbs, 1925
  • Neothunnus Kishinouye, 1923
  • Orcynus Cuvier, 1816
  • Parathunnus Kishinouye, 1923
  • Semathunnus Fowler, 1933

Thunnus is a genus of ocean-dwelling, ray-finned bony fish from the mackerel family, Scombridae. More specifically, Thunnus is one of five genera which make up the tribe Thunnini – a tribe that is collectively known as the tunas. Also called the true tunas or real tunas, Thunnus consists of eight species of tuna (more than half of the overall tribe), divided into two subgenera.

Their coloring, metallic blue on top and shimmering silver-white on the bottom, helps camouflage them from above and below. Atlantic bluefin tuna, the largest member of this genus, can grow to 15 feet (4.6 m) long and weigh up to 1,500 pounds (680 kg). All tunas are extremely strong, muscular swimmers, and the yellowfin tuna is known to reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) when pursuing prey. As with all tunas, members of this genus are warm-blooded, which is a rare trait among fish; this enables them to tolerate cold waters and to dive to deeper depths.[3] Bluefin tunas, for example, are found in Newfoundland and Iceland, and also in the tropical waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Mediterranean Sea, where some individuals go each year to spawn.

Due to overfishing, the range of this genus has declined significantly, having been effectively extirpated from the Black Sea, for example.[4]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Graham2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Sepkoski, Jack (2002). "A compendium of fossil marine animal genera". Bulletins of American Paleontology. 364: 560. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2008-01-08.
  3. ^ Bernal, Diego; Brill, Richard W.; Dickson, Kathryn A.; Shiels, Holly A. (2017-12-01). "Sharing the water column: physiological mechanisms underlying species-specific habitat use in tunas". Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries. 27 (4): 843–880. doi:10.1007/s11160-017-9497-7. ISSN 1573-5184. S2CID 20554689. Archived from the original on 2020-06-17. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
  4. ^ Hogan, C. Michael, Overfishing. Encyclopedia of Earth. eds. Sidney Draggan and Cutler Cleveland. National council for Science and the Environment, Washington DC