The bluefin trevally is an important species to both commercial fisheries and anglers, with the popularity of the fish leading to extensive aquaculture trials.
The catch statistics for the bluefin trevally are poorly reported in most of its range, with only parts of the western Indian Ocean supplying information to the FAO.
In this region, catch levels have fluctuated between 2 and 50 tonnes in the past decade.
Hawaii also keeps catch records, with these showing the species is taken in far less numbers than the giant trevally, with only 704 pounds taken compared to 10 149 lbs of giant trevally in 1998.
In Hawaii, the nearshore stocks of the species have been in decline since the early 1900s, with commercial landings dropping over 300% from 1990 to 1991, and have not recovered.
Most bluefin trevally sold in Hawaii are now imported from other Indo-Pacific nations.
The species is taken by a variety of netting and trapping methods, as well and by hook and line in commercial fisheries.
It is usually sold fresh, as well as frozen or salted.
The rapid decline in the population has seen a focus on breeding the bluefin trevally in captivity.
The species' aquaculture potential was first investigated in a 1975 experiment in French Polynesia, where juveniles of the species were caught in the wild and transported back to a laboratory.
The study found the fish grew to a commercial size of 300 g in 6 to 8 months and only suffered a 5% mortality rate.
It was concluded that such a technique carried out on a larger scale in lagoons would be promising due to the growth rate and relatively high price commanded by the species at market.
Further investigations into the potential for offshore aquaculture were conducted in Hawaii, where the species successfully spawned in captivity.
The only barrier in these studies to successful production was problems with commercial food items.
An in vitro cell culture has recently been established for the species, which will allow long term management of potential viral diseases that may arise during aquaculture of the fish.
The bluefin trevally has been successfully kept in large saltwater aquaria, but require large water volumes to adapt well.

The bluefin trevally is one of the premier gamefish of the Indo-Pacific region, although is often overshadowed by its larger cousin, the giant trevally.
The fish makes long powerful runs on light tackle, and is a determined fighter.
The species readily accepts both bait and lures, with live fish or squid often used as bait and a variety of lures also used on the species.
Lures may include poppers, plugs, spoons, jigs, soft plastic lures and even saltwater flies.
The species inshore habits make it a popular target for spearfishermen also.
In Hawaii the species has bag and size limit restrictions in place to prevent further overexploitation.
It is considered to be a good to excellent food fish, however many cases of ciguatera poisoning have been attributed to the bluefin trevally.
Laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of the toxin in the species flesh, with fish greater than 50 cm likely to be a carrier.
The risk of poisoning has also affected the sales of the fish in the marketplace in recent years.
 Also of concern is one report of infection by a dracunculoid parasite while preparing the fish for eating.
In this case, the parasite invaded the victim's body by entering an open wound while he was filleting the species, and is believed to be one of the first records for such cross contamination.
The IGFA maintains full line and ripped class records for the bluefin trevally.
The all tackle world record for the species stands at 13.24kg (29lb 3oz) taken off Clipperton Island in 2012.
The bluefin trevally is an important species to both commercial fisheries and anglers, with the popularity of the fish leading to extensive aquaculture trials. The catch statistics for the bluefin trevally are poorly reported in most of its range, with only parts of the western Indian Ocean supplying information to the FAO. In this region, catch levels have fluctuated between 2 and 50 tonnes in the past decade. Hawaii also keeps catch records, with these showing the species is taken in far less numbers than the giant trevally, with only 704 pounds taken compared to 10 149 lbs of giant trevally in 1998. In Hawaii, the nearshore stocks of the species have been in decline since the early 1900s, with commercial landings dropping over 300% from 1990 to 1991, and have not recovered. Most bluefin trevally sold in Hawaii are now imported from other Indo-Pacific nations. The species is taken by a variety of netting and trapping methods, as well and by hook and line in commercial fisheries. It is usually sold fresh, as well as frozen or salted. The rapid decline in the population has seen a focus on breeding the bluefin trevally in captivity. The species' aquaculture potential was first investigated in a 1975 experiment in French Polynesia, where juveniles of the species were caught in the wild and transported back to a laboratory. The study found the fish grew to a commercial size of 300 g in 6 to 8 months and only suffered a 5% mortality rate. It was concluded that such a technique carried out on a larger scale in lagoons would be promising due to the growth rate and relatively high price commanded by the species at market. Further investigations into the potential for offshore aquaculture were conducted in Hawaii, where the species successfully spawned in captivity. The only barrier in these studies to successful production was problems with commercial food items. An in vitro cell culture has recently been established for the species, which will allow long term management of potential viral diseases that may arise during aquaculture of the fish. The bluefin trevally has been successfully kept in large saltwater aquaria, but require large water volumes to adapt well.
The bluefin trevally is one of the premier gamefish of the Indo-Pacific region, although is often overshadowed by its larger cousin, the giant trevally. The fish makes long powerful runs on light tackle, and is a determined fighter. The species readily accepts both bait and lures, with live fish or squid often used as bait and a variety of lures also used on the species. Lures may include poppers, plugs, spoons, jigs, soft plastic lures and even saltwater flies. The species inshore habits make it a popular target for spearfishermen also. In Hawaii the species has bag and size limit restrictions in place to prevent further overexploitation. It is considered to be a good to excellent food fish, however many cases of ciguatera poisoning have been attributed to the bluefin trevally. Laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of the toxin in the species flesh, with fish greater than 50 cm likely to be a carrier. The risk of poisoning has also affected the sales of the fish in the marketplace in recent years.  Also of concern is one report of infection by a dracunculoid parasite while preparing the fish for eating. In this case, the parasite invaded the victim's body by entering an open wound while he was filleting the species, and is believed to be one of the first records for such cross contamination. The IGFA maintains full line and ripped class records for the bluefin trevally. The all tackle world record for the species stands at 13.24kg (29lb 3oz) taken off Clipperton Island in 2012.
Bluefin trevally