Jack mackerels are marine fish in the Trachurus genus of the Carangidae family. The name of the genus derives from the Greek words trachys ("rough") and oura ("tail"). Some species, such as T. murphyi, are harvested in purse seine nets, and overfishing (harvesting beyond sustainable levels) has sometimes occurred.
It is often used in Japanese cuisine, where it is called aji, and in Turkish cuisine, where it is called istavrit.
The genus Trachurus was defined in 1810 by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque-Schmaltz, who called the type species Trachurus saurus. Taxonomists later determined that T. saurus was in fact the same species as one described earlier as Scomber trachurus, defined in 1758 by Carolus Linnaeus. Under the rules of binomial nomenclature, that species is now known as Trachurus trachurus, commonly known as the Atlantic horse mackerel.
The currently recognized species in this genus are:
They're closing in I feel their breath
I cannot live without the secrets of my past
Their scent is strong my will is weak
They read my mind I cannot hide
Kill my sorrow I could die tomorrow
If you don't forgive me, my heart is still in me
I run through the night and leave neon-trails
My fluorescent blood shines through my skin
My heart is a beacon they're homing in
From probing tongues or eager lips
I brace myself from their fingertips
They touch my skin my shield is down
My eyes are black
My darkness is back
Kill my sorrow my soul isn't borrowed