Skipjack tuna important prey species for sharks and large pelagic fishes and is often used as live bait when fishing for Marlin. It has no scales, except on the lateral line and the corselet (a band of large, thick scales forming a circle around the body behind the head). It commonly reaches fork lengths up to and a weight of . Its maximum fork length is and maximum weight is . Ageing skipjack tuna is difficult, and the estimates of its potential lifespan range between 8 and 12 years. Skipjack tuna is a batch spawner. Spawning occurs year-round in equatorial waters, but
HMS Skipjack (1806) HMS Skipjack (1806) HMS "Skipjack" was the French naval schooner "Trimeuse", commissioned at Guadeloupe in 1805. The Royal Navy captured her in 1806 and took her into service. She was paid off in 1808 and was used as a breakwater in 1809. On 12 March , after a chase of 15 hours, captured the French Navy schooner "Trimeuse" (or "Tremeuse", or "Tremieuse"), armed with two 9-pounder carronades and one long 6-pounder; she had a crew of 53 men and was from Guadeloupe. She had been out 12 days without capturing anything. The Royal Navy took "Trimeuse" into service as "Skipjack".