The female lays her clutches of 300 or 400 eggs in the open water.[1] This fish sometimes launches itself into the air in an attempt to escape from predators such as tuna, dolphinfishes (Coryphaena), snake mackerel (Gempylus serpens) and the rainbow runner (Elagatis bipinnulata).[1] However, in so doing, it exposes itself to a different set of predators in the form of gulls, cormorants and other aquatic birds.[5] It often exits the water in shoals and sometimes lands on the decks of boats.[5] E. volitans have a high level of genetic similarity caused by a high rate of gene flow and a high level of population expansion, recently.[6]