Snubnose pompano
Trachinotus blochii
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Snubnose pompano
- Scientific
- Trachinotus blochii
- Dhivehi
- ރިނދަވާލިRindha vaali
- Group
- Jacks and trevallies
- Maximum size
- Up to about 1.1 m (fork length); commonly 40 cm; max. published weight 3.4 kg (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives max. 80 cm
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 1 to 7 m; also enters brackish water
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2015
Description
A deep-bodied, blunt-headed pompano, silvery and often washed with golden orange in larger fish, with a dusky orange anal fin. Juveniles live along sandy shores; adults move to clear reefs. It crushes molluscs and hermit crabs with strong plates in its throat.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name rindha vaali (MRS 1997); rindha means mussel, after an oval bone just under the skin of the nape. MRS notes it is occasionally caught on handlines and seen by divers along outer reefs.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Trachinotus-blochii.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ރިނދަވާލި
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Trachinotus_blochii,_Emily_Bay,_Kingston_2899,_Norfolk_Isla
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Rindha vaali' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ރިނދަވާލި' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FishBase also lists 'Fathivali' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used.