FORMIONIDAE Pomfret or jack-pomfret
Deep oval or rhomboid, highly compressed body. Lateral line arched anteriorly, scales small. Dorsal and anal fins elevated anteriorly, caudal fin forked. Two species present in the Arabian Gulf, one silvery-white, the other larger and dark brown. Offshore in deeper water, generally forming demersal shoals, but occasionally found sub-surface. Pomfret are highly prized as food fish, with firm white flesh. Some authors place fish from this family in the Stromateidae.
Silver pomfret Pampus argenteus
Smooth-scaled, deep-bodied, compressed, deeply forked caudal fin. Small mouth and eye placed close to front. Arabian Gulf and east coast, near offshore reefs. 50 cm.