40-551: A barracuda is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus Sphyraena , the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1815. It is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide ranging from the eastern border of the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea , on its western border
80-737: A barracuda targets an intended prey item, its long tail and matching anal and dorsal fins enable it to move with swift bursts of speed to attack its prey before it can escape. Barracudas generally attack schools of fish, speeding at them head first and biting at them with their jaws. When barracudas age, they tend to swim alone. However, there are times when they tend to stay with the pack. Barracudas will sometimes swim in groups. In this case, they can relocate schools of fish into compact areas or lead them into shallow water to more easily feed on them. Some species of barracuda are reputed to be dangerous to swimmers. Barracudas are scavengers, and may mistake snorkelers for large predators, following them hoping to eat
120-459: A free-swimming larval stage. However other patterns of ontogeny exist, with one of the commonest being sequential hermaphroditism . In most cases this involves protogyny , fish starting life as females and converting to males at some stage, triggered by some internal or external factor. Protandry , where a fish converts from male to female, is much less common than protogyny. Most families use external rather than internal fertilization . Of
160-531: A row of darker cross-bars occur on each side. Their fins may be yellowish or dusky. Barracudas live primarily in oceans, but certain species, such as the great barracuda, live in brackish water . Due to similarities, sometimes Barracuda is compared with freshwater pike , though the major difference between the two is that Barracuda has two separate dorsal fins with a forked tail, unlike the freshwater pike. Some species grow quite large (up to 65 inches or 165 cm in length), such as Sphyraena sphyraena , found in
200-442: A silver-colored longitudinal stripe that runs from the base of the caudal (tail) fin . They range from 2 to 40 centimetres (1 to 15 + 1 ⁄ 2 inches) in adult length, and their body shapes are variable with more slender fish in northern populations. The snout is blunt with tiny, sharp teeth in both jaws. The snout contains a unique rostral organ , believed to be electro-sensory in nature, although its exact function
240-742: A trait still present in Holostei ( bowfins and gars ). In some fish like the arapaima , the swim bladder has been modified for breathing air again, and in other lineages it have been completely lost. The teleosts have urinary and reproductive tracts that are fully separated, while the Chondrostei have common urogenital ducts, and partially connected ducts are found in Cladistia and Holostei. Ray-finned fishes have many different types of scales ; but all teleosts have leptoid scales . The outer part of these scales fan out with bony ridges, while
280-626: A wide range of temperatures and salinity . Large schools can be found in shallow, brackish areas with muddy bottoms, as in estuaries and bays. The European anchovy is abundant in the Mediterranean, particularly in the Alboran Sea , Aegean Sea and the Black Sea . This species is regularly caught along the coasts of Crete , Greece , Sicily , Italy , France , Turkey , Northern Iran , Portugal and Spain . They are also found on
320-728: Is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae . Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water , and some in South America are restricted to fresh water. More than 140 species are placed in 16 genera ; they are found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, and in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea . Anchovies are usually classified as oily fish . Anchovies are classified into two subfamilies and 16 genera: Anchovies are small, green fish with blue reflections due to
360-475: Is also available. Fishermen also use anchovies as bait for larger fish, such as tuna and sea bass . The strong taste people associate with anchovies is due to the curing process. Fresh anchovies, known in Italy as alici , have a much milder flavor. The anchovies from Barcola (in the local dialect: sardoni barcolani ) are particularly popular. These white fleshy fish, which are only found at Sirocco in
400-545: Is divided into the infraclasses Holostei and Teleostei . During the Mesozoic ( Triassic , Jurassic , Cretaceous ) and Cenozoic the teleosts in particular diversified widely. As a result, 96% of living fish species are teleosts (40% of all fish species belong to the teleost subgroup Acanthomorpha ), while all other groups of actinopterygians represent depauperate lineages. The classification of ray-finned fishes can be summarized as follows: The cladogram below shows
440-1276: Is known from the Miocene of Azerbaijan . Barracudas are ferocious, opportunistic predators , relying on surprise and short bursts of speed, up to 27 mph (43 km/h), to overtake their prey. Adults of most species are more or less solitary, while young and half-grown fish frequently congregate. Barracudas prey primarily on fish (which may include some as large as themselves). Common prey fish include jacks , grunts , groupers , snappers , small tunas , mullets , killifishes , herrings , and anchovies ; often by simply biting them in half. They kill and consume larger prey by tearing chunks out of their prey. They also seem to consume smaller species of sustenance that are in front of them. Barracuda species are often seen competing against mackerel , needle fish and sometimes even dolphins for prey. Barracudas are usually found swimming in saltwater searching for schools of plankton-feeding fish. Their silver and elongated bodies make them difficult for prey to detect, especially when viewed head-on. Barracudas depend heavily on their eyesight when they are out hunting. When hunting, they tend to notice everything that has an unusual color, reflection, or movement. Once
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#1732780030509480-432: Is relatively rare and is found in about 6% of living teleost species; male care is far more common than female care. Male territoriality "preadapts" a species for evolving male parental care. There are a few examples of fish that self-fertilise. The mangrove rivulus is an amphibious, simultaneous hermaphrodite, producing both eggs and spawn and having internal fertilisation. This mode of reproduction may be related to
520-412: Is set at the end of a stout peduncle . The pectoral fins are placed low on the sides. The swim bladder is large, allowing for minimal energy expenditure while cruising or remaining idle. In most cases, barracuda are dark gray, dark green, white, or blue on the upper body, with silvery sides and a chalky-white belly. Coloration varies somewhat between species. For some species, irregular black spots or
560-400: Is unknown. The mouth is larger than that of herrings and silversides , two fish which anchovies closely resemble in other respects. The anchovy eats plankton and recently hatched fish . Anchovies are found in scattered areas throughout the world's oceans, but are concentrated in temperate waters, and are rare or absent in very cold or very warm seas. They are generally very accepting of
600-487: The California halibut , rock fish , yellowtail , shark , chinook , and coho salmon . It is also extremely important to marine mammals and birds; for example, breeding success of California brown pelicans and elegant terns is strongly connected to anchovy abundance. Anchovies, like most clupeoids (herrings, sardines and anchovies), are filter-feeders that open their mouths as they swim. As water passes through
640-805: The Caribbean Sea , and in tropical areas of the Pacific Ocean. Barracudas reside near the top of the water and near coral reefs and sea grasses. Barracudas are targeted by sport-fishing enthusiasts. The common name "barracuda" is derived from Spanish , with the original word being of possibly Cariban origin. Barracuda are snake -like in appearance, with prominent, sharp-edged, fang -like teeth, much like piranha , all of different sizes, set in sockets of their large jaws. They have large, pointed heads with an underbite in many species. Their gill covers have no spines and are covered with small scales . Their two dorsal fins are widely separated, with
680-506: The Cyprinidae (in goldfish and common carp as recently as 14 million years ago). Ray-finned fish vary in size and shape, in their feeding specializations, and in the number and arrangement of their ray-fins. In nearly all ray-finned fish, the sexes are separate, and in most species the females spawn eggs that are fertilized externally, typically with the male inseminating the eggs after they are laid. Development then proceeds with
720-640: The Gulf of Trieste , achieve the highest prices. In Sweden and Finland , the name "anchovies" is related strongly to a traditional seasoning, hence the product "anchovies" is normally made of sprats and herring can be sold as "anchovy-spiced". Fish from the family Engraulidae are instead known as sardell in Sweden and sardelli in Finland , leading to confusion when translating recipes. In Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia , Singapore , Malaysia and
760-926: The International Game Fish Association , said that the wound could have been caused by a houndfish . Fatalities are nevertheless rare. Deaths have been reported in 1947 in Florida, 1957 in North Carolina and 1960 in Florida, again. Barracudas are popular both as food and game fish . They are most often eaten as fillets or steaks. Larger species, such as the great barracuda , have been implicated in cases of ciguatera food poisoning. Those who have been diagnosed with this type of food poisoning display symptoms of gastrointestinal discomfort, limb weakness, and an inability to differentiate hot from cold effectively. West Africans smoke them for use in soups and sauces . Smoking protects
800-616: The Mediterranean Sea and eastern Atlantic ; Sphyraena picudilla , ranging on the Atlantic coast of tropical America from North Carolina to Brazil and reaching Bermuda . Other barracuda species are found around the world. Examples are Sphyraena argentea , found from Puget Sound southwards to Cabo San Lucas , Sphyraena jello , from the seas of India and the Malay Peninsula and Archipelago. The barracuda genus Sphyraena contains 29 species: The following fossil species are also known: A related fossil genus, Parasphyraena ,
840-784: The Philippines , they are deep-fried and eaten as a snack or a side dish. They are known as ikan bilis in Malay, ikan teri in Indonesian and dilis in Filipino. The earliest known fossil records of anchovy relatives are of large predatory stem -anchovies ( Clupeopsis and Monosmilus ) from the early and middle Eocene of the Tethys Ocean , in Belgium and Pakistan. The large fangs of these early anchovy relatives has led to
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#1732780030509880-488: The oviparous teleosts, most (79%) do not provide parental care. Viviparity , ovoviviparity , or some form of parental care for eggs, whether by the male, the female, or both parents is seen in a significant fraction (21%) of the 422 teleost families; no care is likely the ancestral condition. The oldest case of viviparity in ray-finned fish is found in Middle Triassic species of † Saurichthys . Viviparity
920-663: The sister lineage of all other actinopterygians, the Acipenseriformes (sturgeons and paddlefishes) are the sister lineage of Neopterygii, and Holostei (bowfin and gars) are the sister lineage of teleosts. The Elopomorpha ( eels and tarpons ) appear to be the most basal teleosts. The earliest known fossil actinopterygian is Andreolepis hedei , dating back 420 million years ( Late Silurian ), remains of which have been found in Russia , Sweden , and Estonia . Crown group actinopterygians most likely originated near
960-950: The Devonian-Carboniferous boundary. The earliest fossil relatives of modern teleosts are from the Triassic period ( Prohalecites , Pholidophorus ), although it is suspected that teleosts originated already during the Paleozoic Era . The listing below is a summary of all extinct (indicated by a dagger , †) and living groups of Actinopterygii with their respective taxonomic rank . The taxonomy follows Phylogenetic Classification of Bony Fishes with notes when this differs from Nelson, ITIS and FishBase and extinct groups from Van der Laan 2016 and Xu 2021. [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Anchovy See text An anchovy
1000-402: The adjacent diagram. The swim bladder is a more derived structure and used for buoyancy . Except from the bichirs , which just like the lungs of lobe-finned fish have retained the ancestral condition of ventral budding from the foregut , the swim bladder in ray-finned fishes derives from a dorsal bud above the foregut. In early forms the swim bladder could still be used for breathing,
1040-431: The anterior fin having five spines, and the posterior fin having one spine and nine soft rays. The posterior dorsal fin is similar in size to the anal fin and is situated above it. The lateral line is prominent and extends straight from head to tail. The spinous dorsal fin is placed above the pelvic fins and is normally retracted in a groove. The caudal fin is moderately forked with its posterior edge double-curved and
1080-463: The bichirs and holosteans (bowfin and gars) in having gone through a whole-genome duplication ( paleopolyploidy ). The WGD is estimated to have happened about 320 million years ago in the teleosts, which on average has retained about 17% of the gene duplicates, and around 180 (124–225) million years ago in the chondrosteans. It has since happened again in some teleost lineages, like Salmonidae (80–100 million years ago) and several times independently within
1120-440: The bulkier, fleshy lobed fins of the sister class Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish). Resembling folding fans , the actinopterygian fins can easily change shape and wetted area , providing superior thrust-to-weight ratios per movement compared to sarcopterygian and chondrichthyian fins. The fin rays attach directly to the proximal or basal skeletal elements, the radials, which represent the articulation between these fins and
1160-452: The coast of northern Africa. The range of the species also extends along the Atlantic coast of Europe to the south of Norway. Spawning occurs between October and March, but not in water colder than 12 °C (54 °F). The anchovy appears to spawn at least 100 kilometres (55 nautical miles) from the shore, near the surface of the water. The anchovy is a significant food source for almost every predatory fish in its environment, including
1200-413: The combined effects of overfishing and El Niño and did not fully recover for two decades. A traditional method of processing and preserving anchovies is to gut and salt them in brine, allow them to cure , and then pack them in oil or salt. This results in a characteristic strong flavor and the flesh turning a deep grey. Pickled in vinegar, as with Spanish boquerones , anchovies are milder and
1240-706: The different actinopterygian clades (in millions of years , mya) are from Near et al., 2012. Jaw-less fishes ( hagfish , lampreys ) [REDACTED] Cartilaginous fishes ( sharks , rays , ratfish ) [REDACTED] Coelacanths [REDACTED] Lungfish [REDACTED] Amphibians [REDACTED] Mammals [REDACTED] Sauropsids ( reptiles , birds ) [REDACTED] Polypteriformes ( bichirs , reedfishes ) [REDACTED] Acipenseriformes ( sturgeons , paddlefishes ) [REDACTED] Teleostei [REDACTED] Amiiformes ( bowfins ) [REDACTED] Lepisosteiformes ( gars ) [REDACTED] The polypterids (bichirs and reedfish) are
Barracuda - Misplaced Pages Continue
1280-432: The fish's habit of spending long periods out of water in the mangrove forests it inhabits. Males are occasionally produced at temperatures below 19 °C (66 °F) and can fertilise eggs that are then spawned by the female. This maintains genetic variability in a species that is otherwise highly inbred. Actinopterygii is divided into the subclasses Cladistia , Chondrostei and Neopterygii . The Neopterygii , in turn,
1320-733: The flesh retains a white color. In Roman times, anchovies were the base for the fermented fish sauce garum . Garum had a sufficiently long shelf life for long-distance commerce, and was produced in industrial quantities. Anchovies were also eaten raw as an aphrodisiac . Today, they are used in small quantities to flavor many dishes. Because of the strong flavor, they are also an ingredient in several sauces and condiments, including Worcestershire sauce , caesar salad dressing, remoulade , Gentleman's Relish , many fish sauces , and in some versions of Café de Paris butter . For domestic use, anchovy fillets are packed in oil or salt in small tins or jars, sometimes rolled around capers . Anchovy paste
1360-549: The highest mountain streams . Extant species can range in size from Paedocypris , at 8 mm (0.3 in); to the massive ocean sunfish , at 2,300 kg (5,070 lb); and to the giant oarfish , at 11 m (36 ft). The largest ever known ray-finned fish, the extinct Leedsichthys from the Jurassic , has been estimated to have grown to 16.5 m (54 ft). Ray-finned fishes occur in many variant forms. The main features of typical ray-finned fish are shown in
1400-438: The inner part is crossed with fibrous connective tissue. Leptoid scales are thinner and more transparent than other types of scales, and lack the hardened enamel - or dentine -like layers found in the scales of many other fish. Unlike ganoid scales , which are found in non-teleost actinopterygians, new scales are added in concentric layers as the fish grows. Teleosts and chondrosteans (sturgeons and paddlefish) also differ from
1440-425: The internal skeleton (e.g., pelvic and pectoral girdles). The vast majority of actinopterygians are teleosts . By species count, they dominate the subphylum Vertebrata , and constitute nearly 99% of the over 30,000 extant species of fish . They are the most abundant nektonic aquatic animals and are ubiquitous throughout freshwater and marine environments from the deep sea to subterranean waters to
1480-466: The main clades of living actinopterygians and their evolutionary relationships to other extant groups of fishes and the four-limbed vertebrates ( tetrapods ). The latter include mostly terrestrial species but also groups that became secondarily aquatic (e.g. whales and dolphins ). Tetrapods evolved from a group of bony fish during the Devonian period . Approximate divergence dates for
1520-566: The mouth and out the gills, food particles are sieved by gill rakers and transferred into the esophagus. * Type species On average, the Turkish commercial fishing fleet catches around 300,000 tons per year, mainly in winter. The largest catch is in November and December. The Peruvian anchovy fishery is one of the largest in the world , far exceeding catches of the other anchovy species. In 1972, it collapsed catastrophically due to
1560-421: The remains of their prey. Swimmers have reported being bitten by barracudas, but such incidents are rare and possibly caused by poor visibility. Large barracudas can be encountered in muddy shallows on rare occasion. Barracudas may mistake things that glint and shine, like jewelry, for prey. One incident reported a barracuda jumping out of water and injuring a kayaker, but Jason Schratwieser, conservation director of
1600-638: The soft flesh from disintegrating in the broth and gives it a smoky flavour. Actinopterygii Actinopterygii ( / ˌ æ k t ɪ n ɒ p t ə ˈ r ɪ dʒ i aɪ / ; from actino- 'having rays' and Ancient Greek πτέρυξ (ptérux) 'wing, fins'), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians , is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of skin supported by radially extended thin bony spines called lepidotrichia , as opposed to
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