Golden Thread

Taken in commercial quantities by handlines, longlines, and bottom trawls. Juveniles are also caught in considerable quantities by shrimp trawlers using beam trawls . N. virgatus is one of the most important commercial fish in the East China Sea and northern South China Sea (Li, 1954; Eggleston, 1973). The total catch reported for this species to FAO for 1999 was 250 591 t. The countries with the largest catches were China (246 601 t) and Taiwan Province of China (3 990 t). Marketed mainly fresh, but also steamed or made into fish balls.

A benthic species, occurs on mud or sand bottomsin depths down to about 220 m.Very abundant in the northern part of the South China Sea and southern part of the East China Sea. Young fish generally occur in shallower water, between 18 and 33 m (Eggleston, 1973).Females predominate at small sizes and males at larger sizes, due to faster growth rates in males (Eggleston, 1973; Kao & Liu, 1979). This species is a rudimentary hermaphrodite, in which all males have func-tional testes with rudimentary ovarian portions throughout their life. Spawning takes place from February to June with a peak from February to April in the South China Sea (Eggleston, 1973; Liu & Su, 1972). Eggs and larvae are described by Aoyama & Sotogaki (1955), Renzhai & Surfen (1980) and Renzhai (1986). The diet consists of crustaceans, fish and cephalopods (Eggleston, 1973).Estimates of the parameters of the von Bertalanffy growth curve made for the population from Hong Kong (Eggleston, 1973) are: L = 44.7cm TL, K = 0.41, to = -0.12 (males); and L = 36.2 cm TL, K = 0.35, t0 = - 0.71 (females).

Maximum size is 35 cm SL, commonly 23 cm SL.

Southern Japan, East China Sea, northern part of South China Sea from Vietnam to Formosa Strait, north-western Australia and Arafura Sea .

Body depth 3.2 to 4.0 in SL; snout length greater than diameter of eye; diameter of eye 3.4 to 4.3 in head length; lower margin of eye above a line from tip of snout to upper base of pectoral fin; interorbital width 1.4 to 2.1 in eye; suborbital depth 1.0 to 1.7 in eye diameter; a line drawn up from the posterior edge of suborbital reaching the dorsal profile 5 to 7 scale rows before origin of dorsal fin; preopercle naked width 1 .1 to 2.0 in scaly width pectoral and pelvic fins long, reaching to between level of anus and origin of anal fin; pectoral fins 1 .0 to 1 .2 in head length, pelvic fins 1 .0 to 2.5 in head length; caudal fin moderately forked, upper lobe produced into trailing filament; 3 or 4 pair of small recurved canines anteriorly in upper jaw; gill rakers 12 to 16. Colour: body pink, paler below; yellow stripe on back above lateral line; 5 yellow stripes on sides beneath lateral line, the uppermost of these stripes beginning just beneath origin of lateral line and running horizontally to upper base of caudal peduncle, the remaining stripes somewhat concave and descending anteriorly; ventral surface white; head pink, a yellow stripe from upper lip extending to anteroventral margin of eye; two faint yellow bars across cheeks sometimes present; eye pinkish; upper lip yellow; dorsal fin pale pink, with broad yellow margin, edged below by red anteriorly; a yellow stripe just above base of dorsal fin; anal fin translucent pinkish with yellow submarginal stripe, and narrow yellow stripe just above base of fin, this extending to tip of last anal-fin ray; caudal fin pink, upper margin of fin and filament yellow; pelvic fins pinkish, with yellow stripe along second and third rays; pectoral fins translucent pinkish.

Young fish generally occur in shallower waters, between 18 and 33 m.

Dorsal spines (total): 10; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9; Analspines: 3; Analsoft rays: 8

This species is a rudimentary hermaphrodite in which males have functional testes with rudimentary ovarian portions that remain throughout their life.

Suborbital spine absent. Preopercle with 3 transverse scale rows. Pectoral and pelvic fins long, reaching to between level of anus and origin of anal fin. Upper lobe of caudal fin produced to form a trailing filament. A line drawn up from the posterior edge of suborbital reaching the dorsal profile 5 to 7 scale rows before origin of dorsal fin. Axillary scale present. Body color pink, paler below. Head pink, a yellow stripe from upper lip extending to antero-ventral margin of eye. Two faint yellow bars across cheek sometimes present. Pelvic fins with yellow stripes.

Inhabits muddy or sandy bottoms. Young fish generally occur in shallower water between 18 and 33 m. Feeds on crustaceans, fish and cephalopods. One of the most important commercial fish in the East China Sea and northern South China Sea. May be made into fish balls (Ref. 4931).

fisheries: commercial

分布於西太平洋區，由日本南部至澳洲西北部。台灣四周除東部海域外均可捕獲。

漁期全年皆有，可利用底拖網、延繩釣、手釣等漁法捕獲，肉質細緻，是大眾化的經濟魚種，油炸、清蒸皆適宜。

體呈長紡錘形，側扁；頭端略尖，頭背呈弧形，兩眼間隔區不隆突。吻中大。眼大；眶下骨的後上角具無銳棘，下緣平滑，上緣不具前向棘。口中大，端位；上頜具3-4對犬齒，不呈水平突出；鋤骨、腭骨及舌面均不具齒。前鰓蓋後緣平滑，頰鱗 3列。第一鰓弓鰓耙數12-16。體被大櫛鱗。背鰭連續而無深刻，具硬棘 X，軟條9；臀鰭硬棘III，軟條8；胸鰭長，末端達臀鰭起點；腹鰭長，達臀鰭起點；尾鰭上下葉先端呈尖形，上葉延長成絲狀。頭部上方及體背呈粉紅色，愈近腹部體色愈淡，腹部為銀白色，體側具5-6條金黃色縱帶；側線起始處下方具一小而呈長卵形之淡紅色斑。背鰭淡粉紅色，基部有一條黃色縱紋，另具帶紅色光澤之鮮黃色緣；臀鰭淡粉紅色，有二條黃色縱紋；尾鰭粉紅色，上葉延長，具鮮黃色緣；餘鰭淡粉紅或透明。

主要棲息於大陸棚砂泥底質的水域，棲息深度可達220公尺深。主要覓食甲殼類、頭足類或其他小魚等為食。

Nemipterus virgatus, the golden threadfin bream, is a species of threadfin bream native to the western Pacific, from southern Japan south to northwest Australia including the Arafura Sea. It inhabits areas with mud or sand substrates and the young can be found at depths from 18 to 33 m (59 to 108 ft) while the adults can be found down to 220 m (720 ft). This species can reach a length of 35 cm (14 in), though most are only around 23 cm (9.1 in). It is one of the most important species of commercial fisheries in the East China Sea and northern South China Sea.