The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Tunny \Tun"ny\ (t[u^]n"n[y^]), n.; pl. Tunnies. [L. thunnus,
thynnus, Gr. qy`nnos, qy^nos: cf. It. tonno, F. & Pr. thon.]
(Zool.)
The chiefly British equivalent of tuna; any one of several
species of large oceanic fishes belonging to the Mackerel
family, especially the common or great tunny (Thunnus
thynnus syn. Albacora thynnus, formerly Orcynus thynnus)
native of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It
sometimes weighs a thousand pounds or more, and is
extensively caught in the Mediterranean. On the American
coast it is called horse mackerel. See Illust. of Horse
mackerel, under Horse. [Written also thynny.]
[1913 Webster]
Note: The little tunny (Gymnosarda alletterata) of the
Mediterranean and North Atlantic, and the long-finned
tunny, or albicore (Thunnus alalunga, see
Albacore), are related species of smaller size.
[1913 Webster]