This long, Red tail barracuda fish has a really pointed snout stuffed with two rows of teeth, and small fins set again in the direction of its red-colored crescent, caudal (tail) fin. This article will give an overall description of Red tail barracuda.
Red tail barracuda
It’s a shiny blue-gray above, fading to silver and white beneath, normally with darkish spots on its decrease sides, and generally with faint darker bars on its higher aspect.
It is a profitable daytime ambush hunter that may burst in speeds as much as 35 mph, and is a hazard to people as a result of it can mistakenly assault shiny objects or fish caught on spears.
It will possibly develop to over 5 ft lengthy and over 100 kilos.
Order – Perciformes
Family – Sphyraenidae
Genus – Sphyraena
Species – barracuda
Common Names
Red tail barracuda, barracuda, barra, Commerson’s sea pike, and brief barracuda are widespread English language names. Different names embody alu (Carolinian), amerikanischer pfeilhecht (German), barkura (Miskito), barrcouda (French), barracuda bicuda (Portuguese), bicuda (Portuguese), chai (Palauan), gaviana (Portuguese), kadd (Arabic), kaku (Hawaiian), kucul (Malay), kupala (Hawaiian), ono (Tahitian), picua (Spanish), picúa corsaria (German), picuda (Spanish), seraw (Carolinian), snoek (Dutch), tenak (Malay), and zub-saalim (Somali) are widespread names that seek advice from this fish.
Significance to People
Though not prized as a business fish in North American waters, the Red tail barracuda places up the battle and is due to this fact esteemed by some anglers as a gamefish.
They could be caught with quite a lot of gear together with handlines, rod and reel, seines, trammel nets, and gill nets.
The Red tail barracuda has been implicated in circumstances of ciguatera poisoning inside sure areas of its vary.
Ciguatera poisoning is brought on by the bioaccumulation of ciguatoxins within the flesh of tropical marine fishes.
Ciguatoxins are produced by marine dinoflagellates that develop hooked up to marine algae and as such could also be by the way ingested by herbivorous fishes.
Massive piscivorous reef-dwelling fishes occupying the apex of the meals chain develop into reservoirs for the very best quantities of ciguatoxin by feeding on different members of the reef neighborhood.
Poisoned folks report gastrointestinal maladies which will final a number of days, a common weak point of their legs and arms, and a reversal within the skill to distinguish scorching versus chilly.
The sickness is severe and signs might persist for weeks.
Hazard to People
Assaults on people by Red tail barracuda are uncommon. Inquisitive, sight-oriented fish, barracudas generally exhibit the unnerving behavior of trailing snorkelers and divers.
When assaults happen most of the time it’s as a result of a barracuda makes an attempt to steal a fish from spearfishers or mistakenly interpret a shiny object, resembling a diving knife, for the glint of a shiny fish.
Such incidents normally consist of 1 very fast strike, the results of which can be a laceration and a few lacks of tissue.
Fatalities from barracuda assaults are uncommon. In 1947, a demise off Key West was attributed to a barracuda, adopted by one other case off the coast of North Carolina in 1957.
A well-documented barracuda assault occurred on a freediver off Pompano Seashore, Florida in 1960. The diver was bitten twice, and the ensuing accidents required 31 stitches.
Nonetheless, such assaults are unusual and most of the time simply preventable with a couple of easy precautions.
Conservation
The barracuda isn’t listed as endangered or susceptible to the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The IUCN is a world union of states, governmental companies, and non-governmental organizations in a partnership that assesses the conservation standing of species.
Geographical Distribution
Occurring worldwide in close-to-shore tropical and subtropical seas (30°N – 30°S), the Redtail barracuda is widespread within the western Atlantic Ocean from Massachusetts (U.S.) to Brazil.
It is usually discovered within the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea in addition to the eastern Atlantic Ocean, Indo-Pacific, and the Pink Sea.
It’s uncommon or absent in areas of the eastern Pacific Ocean.
Habitat
Red tail barracuda generally happen in nearshore coral reefs, seagrasses, and mangroves.
They could additionally reside within the open ocean, residing predominantly at or close to the floor, though they’re at occasions discovered at depths to 325 ft (100m).
Barracudas are typically solitary however are generally present in small aggregations over reefs and sandy bottoms. Juveniles mature amongst mangroves and seagrass beds, habitats that supply cowl from predators.
Throughout the second yr of life, barracuda transfers to deeper reef habitats. Juveniles and a few adults have been noticed in areas that obtain excessive quantities of freshwater enter, nonetheless, adults tend to keep away from areas of brackish water.
Biology
Options
The Red tail barracuda has a slender, streamlined physique that’s spherical within the mid-section.
The highest of the top between the eyes is sort of flat and the mouth is giant, containing many giant sharp teeth and a projecting decrease jaw.
The pectoral fin suggestions lengthen to the origin of the pelvic fins.
The spinous and gentle dorsal fins are extensively separated and the double emarginate tail fin displays pale tips about every lobe.
Coloration
Body coloration of the Red tail barracuda is brownish or bluish-grey on the dorsum and higher aspect, with a greenish solid shading to silvery on the edges and a white stomach.
The higher aspect might have 18-23 darkish bars most frequently observable when the fish is resting or over a variegated substrate.
The black spots on the decrease sides of the Red tail barracuda distinguish it from different species of barracuda. The second dorsal fin, anal, and caudal fins are violet to black with whitish suggestions.
Younger barracuda exhibit pale reticulations on the dorsum and a darkish stripe on both aspect that breaks into spots because the fish grows.
These patterns are considerably ephemeral although juveniles can alter their color patterns to intently match that of their environment.
These adjustments in coloration serve to camouflage the fish from predators, in addition, to effectively as cautious prey.
Adults have related coloration together with an extra silvery look that’s advantageous to a fish that swims close to the floor of the water.
Dentition
The Red tail barracuda has a big mouth containing two units of a razor-sharp tooth, making it an environment-friendly predator.
There’s a row of small razor-sharp teeth alongside the skin of the jaw with a bigger set of dagger-like tooth inside these.
The intently set teeth are flattened and triangular with sharp edges used to tear the flesh of prey.
Lengthy needlelike tooth match into their very own holes within the opposing jaw, permitting the Redtail barracuda to shut its mouth.
This provides its prey with little likelihood of escape. This fish grabs its prey, swallowing small victims entire whereas bigger prey is lower into items to be swallowed individually.
Dimension, Age, and Development
Red tail barracuda are giant fish. The document for a hook and line caught Red tail barracuda is 1.7 meters (5.5 ft), 44 kg (103 lbs) and the species is reported to achieve a measurement of two meters, 50 kg.
Any barracuda over 4.eight ft (1.5 m) in size might be thought-about very giant. Primarily based on scale evaluation of huge specimens, Red tail barracuda have a lifespan of not less than 14 years.
Sexual maturity is reached at a size of about 23 inches (60 cm). At this measurement, males are sometimes about two years and females near 4 years of age.
Meals Habits
Red tail barracudas feed on an array of prey together with fishes resembling jacks, grunts, groupers, snappers, small tunas, mullets, killifishes, herrings, and anchovies.
Barracudas have a big gape and really sharp tooth, enabling them to feed on giant fishes by chopping them in half. An opportunistic predator, Redtail barracuda feeds all through the water column.
Typically a diurnal fish, Redtail barracuda finds their prey largely by sight. The physique plan of the Red tail barracuda is designed for velocity and it’s estimated that high velocity for the species could also be as quick as 36 mph (58 kph).
Reproduction
The timing and site of spawning have not been effectively documented. It’s believed that spawning takes place in deeper, offshore waters.
Proof exists that barracuda are seasonal spawners and within the Florida Keys they’re believed to breed within the spring.
Throughout the spawning occasion, eggs are launched and fertilized in open waters and dispersed by the currents. Newly hatched larvae bear little resemblance to adults.
Searching for security from predators in addition to a supply of meals, the larvae settle in shallow, vegetated areas of estuaries.
Juveniles develop into recognizable as miniature variations of the adults at about .5 inches (1.three cm) in size.
At a size of about 1.2 inches (3cm), the juveniles transfer to open waters throughout the estuary, ultimately leaving the estuary altogether at a measurement of about 5 cm (2 inches) in size.
These juvenile barracuda spend the rest of their first yr of life inside mangrove and seagrass habitats.
Throughout the second yr of life, they transfer to deep reef areas the place they’ll spend their maturity.
Predators
There are few predators that are giant sufficient and quick sufficient to feed on grownup Red tail barracuda.
Sharks, tuna, and goliath grouper have been identified to feed on small grownup barracuda. Juveniles seemingly fall prey to quite a lot of inshore predators.
Parasites
Normally, the barracuda has few parasites for a fish that has been effectively studied. The monogean trematodePseudochauhanea sphyraenae is an ectoparasite occurring on the gills of the Red tail barracuda.
Copepods have additionally been noticed across the mouth space of this fish. Different parasites embody protozoans, quite a few digenea (flukes), monogenea (gillworms), cestoda (tapeworms), nematoda (spherical worms), isopods, and fish lice.
The great barracuda can also be parasitized by different fish (ectoparasites) together with the reside sharksuckerEcheneis naucrates, pilotfish Naucrates ductor, slender suckerfish Phtheirichthys lineatus, spearfish remoraRemora brachyptera, and marlin sucker Remora osteochir.
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