leerfish

{{Short description|Species of fish}}

{{Speciesbox

| fossil_range = {{fossil range|50|0|Late Ypresian to present}}

| image = Lichia amia.jpg

| status = LC

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{cite iucn |author=de Morais, L. |author2=Smith-Vaniz, W.F. |author3=Sagna, A. |author4=Djiman, R. |author5=Camara, K. |author6=Carpenter, K.E. |author7=Nunoo, F. |author8=Sidibé, A. |author9=Sylla, M. |author10=Williams, A.B. |author11=Montiero, V. |date=2015 |title=Lichia amia |volume=2015 |page=e.T198642A43159295 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T198642A43159295.en |access-date=20 November 2021}}

| taxon = Lichia amia

| parent_authority = Cuvier, 1816

| authority = (Linnaeus, 1758)

| display_parents = 3

| synonyms = *Scomber amia Linnaeus, 1758

• Caesiomorus amia (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Caranx amia (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Hypacantus amia (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Centronotus vadigo Lacépède, 1801
• Campogramma vadigo (Lacepède, 1801)
• Scomber flexuosus Lichtenstein, 1823
• Porthmeus argenteus Valenciennes, 1833

| synonyms_ref = {{Fishbase|Lichia|amia|month=August|year=2019}}

}}

The leerfish or garrick (Lichia amia) is a species of marine fish in the family Carangidae. It is the only extant member of the genus Lichia. It is native to much of the eastern Atlantic Ocean, from the Mediterranean and western Black Sea, north to France, and south along the coastal waters of western Africa, reaching as far south as eastern South Africa.Van Der Elst, R. (1993). A Guide to the Common Sea Fishes of Southern Africa. Struik Publishers. {{ISBN|1-86825-394-5}}.[http://81.8.63.74/Downloads/Black_Sea_Fishes_Check_List.pdf Black Sea Fishes Check List] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110125131742/http://81.8.63.74/Downloads/Black_Sea_Fishes_Check_List.pdf |date=2011-01-25 }} They are an important species in coastal recreational fisheries, especially in Africa.{{Cite journal |last=Murray |first=Taryn S. |last2=Cowley |first2=Paul D. |last3=Bennett |first3=Rhett H. |last4=Childs |first4=Amber-Robyn |date=2018 |title=Fish on the move: connectivity of an estuary-dependent fishery species evaluated using a large-scale acoustic telemetry array |url=https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/abs/10.1139/cjfas-2017-0361 |journal=Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences |volume=75 |issue=11 |pages=2038–2052 |doi=10.1139/cjfas-2017-0361 |issn=0706-652X}}{{Cite journal |last=Henriques |first=R |last2=Potts |first2=WM |last3=Sauer |first3=WHH |last4=Shaw |first4=PW |date=2012-12-01 |title=Evidence of deep genetic divergence between populations of an important recreational fishery species, Lichia amia L. 1758, around southern Africa |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2989/1814232X.2012.749809 |journal=African Journal of Marine Science |volume=34 |issue=4 |doi=10.2989/1814232x.2012.749809 |issn=1814-232X}}

These fish can reach 1.5 m in length and more than 30 kg {{Citation needed|date=October 2020}} in weight. They inhabit the coastal wave zone where they form small shoals to hunt other smaller fish, favouring mullets. In South Africa, they primarily breed in estuaries and move to marine environments after maturation.

Phylogenetic evidence suggests that a deep genetic divergence exists between leerfish populations in South Africa and Angola, likely divided by the Benguela Current. It has thus been recommended that these populations be managed as two independent stocks.

File:Lichia veronensis.JPG]]

An extinct relative, Lichia veronensis Bannikov, 1990, is known from the Early Eocene-aged Monte Bolca site of Italy, suggesting that the genus has inhabited its present range for nearly 50 million years. Another extinct species, Lichia alta Gorjanovic-Kramberger, 1891, is known from the Oligocene of Slovenia. Fossil Lichia remains tentatively assigned to the extant L. amia are known from the late Miocene (Messinian) of Italy, in the midst of the Messinian Salinity Crisis. This suggests that the extant L. amia must have diverged from its extinct relatives prior to this point, and that pockets of ocean likely persisted in the Mediterranean during this period of time.{{Cite journal |last1=Carnevale |first1=G. |last2=Bannikov |first2=Alexandre F. |last3=Marramà |first3=G. |last4=Tyler |first4=James C. |last5=Zorzin. |first5=R. |date=2014 |title=The Bolca Fossil-Lagerstätte: A window into the Eocene World. 5. The Pesciara- Monte Postale Fossil-Lagerstätte: 2. Fishes and other vertebrates. Excursion guide |url=https://iris.unito.it/bitstream/2318/149338/1/Carnevale%20et%20al%202014%20The%20Pesciara%20F-L.%20Fishes%20and%20other%20vertebrates2.pdf |journal=Rendiconti della Società Paleontologica Italiana |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=i–xxvii |hdl=10088/25678}}{{Cite journal |last=Carnevale |first=Giorgio |last2=Caputo |first2=G. |last3=Landini |first3=D. |date=2008 |title=A leerfish (Teleostei, Carangidae) from the Messinian evaporites of the Vena del Gesso basin (Romagna Apennines, Italy): Paleogeographical and paleoecological implications. |url=https://iris.unito.it/handle/2318/130599 |journal=Bollettino della Società Paleontologica Italiana |volume=47 |issue=2}}