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
Skipjack shad one study, skipjack shad have been found to feed on other shad/herring species such as the threadfin shad, the gizzard shad and young of the year herring species. In some extreme cases, it was shown that they could rely on cannibalism to survive. They are also known to feed on small fishes, mostly shad, while the juveniles feed on insects. The maximum size of the shad/herring utilized by skipjack shad was found to be about 30-35% of the skipjack's body length. There is not much data on the predators of the skipjack shad. Larger fish species, seabirds, and humans prey