The blackfin scad (Alepes melanoptera) (also known as the shortfinned trevally and Chinese trevally) is a species of tropical marine fish of the jack family Carangidae. The species inhabits inshore waters throughout the Indo-Pacific region, although is rare in the western Indian Ocean. It is not a large species, with the largest reported capture being 25 cm, and it is distinguished readily from similar species by the prominent black dorsal fin. It is a predator which feeds on planktonic crustaceans, but little else is known of its biology. The blackfin scad is a minor food fish throughout its range, and is highly valued in Cambodia and Thailand. Taxonomy and naming The blackfin scad is one of five species in the scad genus Alepes, which is one of 33 genera of the jack family, Carangidae. The Carangidae are part of the order Carangiformes. The species was first scientifically described by the English naturalist William John Swainson under the name of Trachinus melanoptera, placing the species in a new genus which was found to be already in use by an unrelated species of fish. The species was therefore subsequently placed in the new combination of Alepes melanoptera, becoming the type species of the new genus Alepes. After Swainson's initial description, Pieter Bleeker unknowingly redescribed the species as Selar malam, a name which was revised three times before it too was assigned to Alepes. The species was redescribed twice more by Day in 1876 and Chu and Chen in 1958. Being Swainson is the first author to correctly describe the fish, even though he initially ascribed it to the wrong genus, the ICZN recognises Alepes melanoptera as the correct name, and the rest as invalid junior synonyms. Such synonymy is common in the genus Alepes due to the abundance of similar genera. The specific name 'melanoptera' literally means 'black wing' in Greek; a reference to its distinctive colouration. Description The blackfin scad has a body profile very similar to that of the other round scads of the genus Alepes, in particular to Alepes apercna, but can be distinguished quite easily by the prominent black colouration of the dorsal fin. The species has a tendency, like other carangids, to become more elongated with age, thus changing their body proportions slightly. It has an oblong, compressed body with dorsal and ventral profiles that are nearly equally convex in shape. The nose somewhat blunter than others