bonito Sarda sarda, a fish of the scombrid (mackerel and tuna) family which occurs on both sides of the S. and N. Atlantic, as far north as Cape Cod in the west and the south coast of Britain in the east; throughout the Mediterranean; and in the Black Sea, whence it migrates south at the end of the year, returning in the spring. The name is also used in connection with other species, e.g. the striped or oceanic bonito (see skipjack).
The back of the bonito is steel blue with dark blue slanting stripes; its sides and belly silvery. Its maximum length is 90 cm (3'), although it is never as big as this in European waters.
