Sphyraena forsteri

• Overview
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Overview

Family : Barracudas ; Nocturnally active , but occurring in large schools above lagoon patch reefs and along outer reef slopes during the day[1]. Feeds mainly on fishes , but also on penaeid shrimps and squids . Sold fresh, frozen or dried salted. Reports of ciguatera poisoning need confirmation.

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Family Sphyraenidae

Tropical and subtropical . Distribution: Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. Elongated body. Large-mouthed with the lower jaw projecting forward bearing strong fanglike teeth. Upper jaw non-protractile, an adaptation to feeding on large prey . Well-developed lateral line. Gill rakers vestigial . Position of pectoral fins relatively low. Dorsal fins far apart. First dorsal fin with 5 spines; second dorsal with 1 spine and 9 soft rays . Vertebrae 24 (11+13). Usually to 1.8 m maximum length ; could grow longer . Voracious predators of other fishes . Attacks on humans have been reported. Pelagic spawning in schools. Food and game fishes, but large specimens may be ciguatoxic.The family Sphyraenidae belongs to the Class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) and the Order Perciformes. It contains 1 genus and 18 species. It may be found in Marine environments and is primarily Marine. Members of this family are not used in the aquarium trade. Reproductively, most members of this family are nonguarders. The main mode of swimming of adult fish in this family is carangiform . Compared with other fish, the activity level of this family tends to be active . Members of this family have been dated back to the lower Eocene epoch of the Tertiary period. Etymology of this family name : Greek, sphyraina = a fish similar to an iron pin, a pike like fish, 1849

Habitat

Typically found in water with a depth of 0 to -5,049 meters (0 to -16,565 feet).[2]

Biome: Saltwater . Reef-associated .

Taxonomy

Unambiguous Synonyms

1. Callosphyraena toxeuma (Fowler, 1904)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: Data last modified by FishBase 13-Feb-1997

Similar Species

Members of the genus Sphyraena

There are approximately 91 species in this genus:

S. abtusata · S. acus · S. acutidens · S. acutipinnis (Pointed Finned Sea Pike) · S. affinis · S. afra (Guinean Barracuda) · S. agam · S. akerstromi · S. altipinnis · S. argentea (California Barracuda) · S. argenteus · S. aureoviridis · S. australis · S. barracuda (Commerson's Sea Pike) · S. becuna · S. bocagei · S. boralis · S. borcalis · S. borealis (Northern Barracuda) · S. branneri · S. chinensis · S. chrysotaenea · S. chrysotaenia (Green-And-Gold Barracuda) · S. commersoni · S. commersonii · S. dentatus · S. diastes · S. afra · S. dussumieri · S. ensis (Mexican Barracuda) · S. eusis · S. falvicauda · S. flavicauda (Yellowstripe Barracuda) · S. forsteri (Forster´s Sea-Pike) · S. fosteri · S. gauchancho · S. genie · S. gnagnanche · S. goodingi · S. grandisquamis · S. guachanca · S. guachancho (Guachanche Barracuda) · S. guaguancho · S. guntheri · S. helleri (Heller´s Barracuda) · S. hupferi · S. iburiensis · S. idiastes (Pelican Barracuda) · S. japonica (Japanese Barracuda) · S. jello (Indo-Malaysian Barracuda) · S. juachancho · S. jucuda · S. langer · S. langsar · S. lewini · S. lineata · S. lucasana (Cortez Barracuda) · S. lysan · S. megalolepis · S. qenie · S. novaehollandiae (Short-Finned Seaspike) · S. novae hollandiae · S. obtusa · S. obtusata (Green-And-Gold Sea-Pike) · S. obtusirostris · S. opet · S. picuda · S. picudilla (Little Barracuda) · S. picunda · S. pinguis (Little Barracuda) · S. piscatorium · S. polylepis · S. putnamae (William´s Barracuda) · S. qenie · S. qenie (Blacktail Barracuda) · S. quachancho · S. quenie · S. raghava · S. schlegelii · S. snodgrassi · S. spel · S. spet · S. sphyraena (Mediterranean Barracuda) · S. sphyraena bocagei · S. sphyraena picuda · S. strenua · S. tome · S. toxeuma · S. viridensis (Yellowmouth Barracuda) · S. viridensis · S. waitii

More Info

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Further Reading

• Assadi, H. and R. Dehghani P. (1997). Atlas of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman fishes. Iranian Fisheries Research and Training Organization, Iran.
• Au, K.-C. (1979). Systematic study on the barracudas (Pisces: Sphyraenidae) from a northern sector of the South China Sea. J. Nat. Hist. 13:619-647.
• Bianchi, G. (1985). FAO species identification sheets for fishery purposes. Field guide to the commercial marine and brackish-water species of Pakistan. Prepared with the support of PAK/77/033/ and FAO (FIRM) Regular Programme. FAO, Rome. 200 p.
• Bouhlel, M. (1988). Poissons de Djibouti. Placerville (California, USA): RDA International, Inc. 416 p.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. ENG url p. 280, p. 284.
• Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). London: BM(NH) url p. 111, p. 171.
• Catalogue of the fishes in the British Museum / by Albert G [Tokyo?]: Kagaku Kisho Hakkokai, Shwa 13 [1938]. ENG url p. 337.
• Conlu, P.V. (1986). Guide to Philippine flora and fauna. Fishes. Volume IX. Natural Resources Management Center, Quezon City. 495 p.
• Dalzell, P., S.R. Lindsay and H. Patiale. (1991). Fisheries resources survey of the Island of Niue. Tech. Doc. Inshore Fish. Res. Proj. S. Pac. Comm 3. A report prepared in conjunction with the South Pacific Commission Inshore Fisheries Research Proje
• David, G. (1985). P�che de subsistance et milieu naturel: les mangrove de Vanuatu et leur int�r�t halieutique. Notes et documents d'oc�anographie. Mission ORSTOM de Port-Vila, 13: 67 p. multigr.
• De Sylva, D.P. and F. Williams (1986). Sphyraenidae. p. 721-726. In M.M. Smith and P.C. Heemstra (eds.) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
• Fischer, W., I. Sousa, C. Silva, A. de Freitas, J.M. Poutiers, W. Schneider, T.C. Borges, J.P. Feral and A. Massinga (1990). Fichas FAO de identifica�ao de esp�cies para actividades de pesca. Guia de campo das esp�cies comerciais marinhas e de �guas salob
• Fishery bulletin / U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service. Washington, D.C.: The Service: ENG url p. 215.
• Gloerfelt-Tarp, T. and P.J. Kailola (1984). Trawled fishes of southern Indonesia and northwestern Australia. Australian Development Assistance Bureau, Australia, Directorate General of Fishes, Indonesia, and German Agency for Technical Cooperation, Fe
• Japan International Cooperation Agency (1987). The fisheries resources survey in Fiji and Tuvalu. Figures and tables. Japan International Cooperation Agency, April 1987.
• Kailola, P.J. (1991). The fishes of Papua New Guinea: a revised and annotated checklist. Vol. III. Gobiidae to Molidae. Research Bulletin No. 41, Research Section, Dept. of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Papua New Guinea. 153 p.
• Kapoor, D., R. Dayal and A.G. Ponniah (2002). Fish biodiversity of India. National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources Lucknow, India.775 p.
• Masuda, H., K. Amaoka, C. Araga, T. Uyeno and T. Yoshino (1984). The fishes of the Japanese Archipelago. Vol. 1 (text). Tokai University Press, Tokyo, Japan. 437 p. (text), 370 pls.
• McCormack, G. (2000). Cook Islands biodiversity and natural heritage database. Sent by Gerald McCormack as RTF document in May 2000 for use in FishBase.
• Memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zo�logy, at Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass. Cambridge [Mass.]: The Museum, 1876-1938. ENG url p. 262, p. 263.
• Myers, R.F. (1991). Micronesian reef fishes. Second Ed. Coral Graphics, Barrigada, Guam. 298 p.
• Myers, R.F. (1999). Micronesian reef fishes: a comprehensive guide to the coral reef fishes of Micronesia, 3rd revised and expanded edition. Coral Graphics, Barrigada, Guam. 330 p.
• NOAA technical report NMFS SSRF. Seattle, Wash.: National Marine Fisheries Service; ENG url p. 20.
• Nguyen Huu Phung and Nguyen Nhat Thi (1994). Checklist of marine fishes in Vietnam. Vol. 2. Osteichthyes, from Elopiformes to Mugiliformes. Science and Technics Publishing House, Vietnam.
• Randall, J.E. (1995). Coastal fishes of Oman. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. 439 p.
• Randall, J.E. (1997). Randall's underwater photos. Collection of over 2, 000 underwater photos (slides). Unpublished.
• Randall, J.E. and C. Anderson (1993). Annotated checklist of the epipelagic and shore fishes of the Maldives Islands. Ichthyol. Bull. of the J.L.B. Smith Inst. of Ichthyol. 59:47.
• Randall, J.E., H. Ida, K. Kato, R.L. Pyle and J.L. Earle (1997). Annotated checklist of inshore fishes of the Ogasawara Islands. Nat. Sci. Mus. Monogr. (11):1-74.
• Senou, H. (2001). Sphyraenidae. Barracudas. p. 3685-3697. In K.E. Carpenter and V. Niem (eds.) FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Vol. 6. Bony fishes part 4 (Labridae to L
• Shao, K.-T., S.-C. Shen, T.-S. Chiu and C.-S. Tzeng (1992). Distribution and database of fishes in Taiwan. p. 173-206. In C.-Y. Peng (ed.) Collections of research studies on 'Survey of Taiwan biological resources and information management'. Institute
• Sommer, C., W. Schneider and J.-M. Poutiers (1996). FAO species identification field guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of Somalia. FAO, Rome. 376 p.
• Special scientific report. Seattle, National Marine Fisheries Service; for sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1949-1971. ENG url p. 26.
• Tana, T.S. (2050). Review on previous and present ichthyology works on marine fish of Cambodia. To be published in Naga.
• Thollot, P. (1996). Les poissons de mangrove du lagon sud-ouest de Nouvelle-Cal�donie. ORSTOM �ditions, Paris.
• Tinker, S.W. (1978). Fishes of Hawaii, a handbook of the marine fishes of Hawaii and the Central Pacific Ocean. Hawaiian Service Inc., Honolulu. 568 p.
• Wass, R. C. (1984). An annotated checklist of the fishes of Samoa. Natl. Ocean. Atmos. Adminis. Tech. Rept., Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rept. Fish. (781).
• Winterbottom, R. and R.C. Anderson (1997). A revised checklist of the epipelagic and shore fishes of the Chagos Archipelago, Central Indian Ocean. Ichthyol. Bull. Smith. Inst. (66):1-28.

Notes

Contributors

• Allen, Gerald R. (from FishBase).
• Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed April 20, 2007.
• FishBase 2006.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 01, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 8 providers.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 01, 2008:

• Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum: Bishop Museum Natural History Specimen Data
• Burke Museum: University of Washington Fish Collection
• FishBase: FishBase DiGIR Provider - Philippine Server
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University: AIMS - Baited Remote Underwater Video Station (OBIS Australia)
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University: Bishop Museum Data (OBIS distribution) (USOBIS)
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University: CSIRO Marine Data Warehouse (OBIS Australia)
• Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University: South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity - Fish Collection (AfrOBIS)
• Museum national d'histoire naturelle: Ichtyologie
• National Chemical Laboratory: IndOBIS, Indian Ocean Node of OBIS
• OZCAM (Online Zoological Collections of Australian Museums) Provider: Online Zoological Collections of Australian Museums
• Royal Ontario Museum: Fish specimens
• Senckenberg: Collection Pisces

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2502174
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Fis-31509
• Fishbase Species ID: 5734
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 14170054
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 170434
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 125292

Footnotes

1. Senou, H. (2001). Sphyraenidae. Barracudas. p. 3685-3697. In K.E. Carpenter and V. Niem (eds.) FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Vol. 6. Bony fishes part 4 (Labridae to L [back]
2. Mean = -264.700 meters (-868.438 feet), Standard Deviation = 818.750 based on 187 observations. Ocean depth information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]

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