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Fish Photos & Information

Fish, Crustaceans & Cephalopods

Beche De Mer
(Sea Cucumber)

John Dory are olive-green in colour and have a large black spot with a white or yellow margin on each side.  Their body is covered with minute scales.  John dory have 10 spines with long filamentous membranes between them on their dorsal fin.

John Dory are present in continental shelf waters from south east Queensland, south and around to north west Western Australia.  They are also found in the Western Indian Ocean, eastern Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and the waters of New Zealand and Japan.

John Dory are found in depths from 5 metres to 360 metres, but are uncommon in waters deeper than 200m.  They live close to the seabed.

John Dory are known to spawn off  the coast of New South Wales in late summer and autumn at depths of 50 to 100 metres.  They reach a maximum size of 65 cm total length and a weight of 3 kg.

John Dory are taken primarily as a bycatch of the South East Fishery.  They are trawled from depths of between 50m and 200m off New South Wales and eastern Victoria.

Fishing for John Dory:

John Dory are often caught by Recreational Fishers using live baits, and on inshore reefs, anglers may catch John Dory using whole fish or flesh baits.

Cooking John Dory:

Very good eating.

[Main Australian Fish & Seafood Page]

SIZE: whole 0.8-2.5 kg, fillet 100-300 g

John Dory, the premium fish for exclusive dining

IDENTIFYING FEATURES: Olive-brown with a golden sheen and a dark spot on the centre of each side. Tiny scales and a very smooth skin. The body is almost oval, very compressed and it has a large head and upright jaw. The dorsal-fin spine membranes extend well beyond the spines and there is a single row of spiny-edged scutes along the belly and at the base of dorsal and anal fins.

COMPARISONS: Dories are distinct from all other fishes, with the exception of their deepwater relatives the oreos from which they differ in having a smoother, paler skin and smaller eye. The John Dory, with its dark fingerprint spot and long filamentous dorsal fin, is an unmistakable member of the group.

FILLET: White firm flesh. Very deep, short and tapering sharply. Rarely skinned with small and barely detectable scales.

HABITAT: Quite common in the coastal water of northern New Zealand, particularly from Bay of Plenty northwards, but not abundant in any locality. This species does not school.

CATCHING METHODS: Longliner, Danish seining and trawled.