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Barracuda (): The
barracuda is a ray-finned fish known for its large size (up to 6 ft
in length and up to a foot in width, for some species) and
fearsome appearance. Its body is long, fairly compressed, and
covered with small, smooth scales. It is a salt water fish, and is
found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide. It is of the
genus Sphyraena, the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae.
Appearance and physical description
Barracudas are elongated fish with powerful jaws. The lower jaw of
the large mouth juts out beyond the upper. Barracudas possess
strong, fang-like teeth. These are unequal in size and set in
sockets in the jaws on the roof of the mouth. The head is quite
large, pointed, and it is pike-like in appearance. The gill-covers
do not have spines and are covered with small scales. The two dorsal
fins are widely separated, with the first having five spines and the
second having one spine and nine soft rays. The second dorsal fin
equals the anal fin in size and is situated more or less above it.
The lateral line is prominent and extends straight from head to
tail. The spinous dorsal fin is placed above the pelvics. The hind
end of the caudal fin is forked or concave. It is set at the end of
a stout peduncle. The pectoral fins are placed low down on the
sides. The barracuda swim bladder is large.
In general, the barracuda's coloration is dark green or gray above
chalky-white below. This varies somewhat. Sometimes there is a row
of darker cross-bars or black spots on each side. The fins may be
yellowish or duskish. Barracudas only live in oceans.
Some species of barracuda grow to a large size. The species which do
are the European barracuda, barracouta or spet (S. sphyraena), found
in the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic; the great barracuda,
picuda or becuna (S. picuda), ranging on the Atlantic coast of
tropical America from Florida to Brazil and reaching the Bermudas;
the California Barracuda (S. argentea), extending from Puget Sound
southwards to Cabo San Lucas; the Indian barracuda (S. jello) and
the black-finned or Commerson's barracuda (S. commersoni), both from
the seas of India and the Malay Peninsula and Archipelago.
Behavior
Barracudas occur both singly and in schools around reefs, but also
appear in open seas . They are voracious predators and hunt using a
classic example of lie-in-wait or ambush. They rely on surprise and
short bursts of speed (up to 28 mph or 43 km/h) to overrun their
prey, sacrificing maneuverability.
Adult barracudas are more or less solitary in their habits, while
young and half-grown fish frequently congregate in schools. These
fish do not care for their young. A barracudas diet is composed of
fish of all types. Large barracudas, when gorged, may attempt to
herd a shoal of prey fish in shallow water, where they will guard
over the fish until they are ready for another meal. Large
barracudas have been known to eat young barracudas.
Barracudas and humans
Like sharks, barracudas have long had a bad reputation as being
dangerous to humans. As barracudas are also scavengers, they may
mistake snorkelers for large predators and follow them in the hopes
of scavenging the remains of an attack on prey.
Being formidable hunters, they should be respected, as barracudas
are perfectly capable of defending themselves against humans that
harass them. Handfeeding or trying to touch them is strongly
discouraged. Spearfishing around barracudas can
also be quite dangerous, as they are strongly attracted by the
wounded fish.
There have been isolated cases where barracudas have bitten a human,
but these incidents are rare and are believed to be caused by bad
visibility. Barracudas will stop after the first bite as humans are
not their normal food source.
Wearing jewelry and other shiny objects is discouraged as barracudas
are attracted to things that glint and shine.
As food
Barracudas are caught as both food and game fish. They are most
often eaten as fillet or steak and have a strong taste like tuna or
salmon. Larger species, like the great barracuda, have in some areas
been implicated in cases of ciguatera food poisoning. In southern
Nigeria, West Africa they are smoked and used in the preparation of
different soups. The reason for smoking is because when cooked
fresh, the fish is quite soft and disintegrates in the soup.
Angling
Barracuda are prize fish and can be caught by either conventional
gear or fly fishing. They are extremely powerful and require
appropriately scaled tackle.People that fish for fish such as the
barracuda should use steel wire due to their extremely sharp teeth.
Around florida to fish for them we will use around 30 pound test
connected to a swivel and that to your steel wire and that directely
to preffered size hook. For bait we like to use googgle eye, blue
runners, threadfins (greenies),or sardines or realy any type of
bait. When lure fishing Barracuda tubes work best, yellow and green
and white work best as they imitate their prey the houndfish or
needlefish. If you use a nother lure cast your rod to one reel fast
and try to take it away from him and hold on to your rod. It is
smart to retrieve the lure as soon as possible. Barracuda thrash
around, violently, trying to get free. These tactics can be
dangerous for the angler due to their sharp teeth.
In popular culture
Because of its sleek appearance and its predatory nature, the
barracuda has come to symbolize speed, power, and viciousness. The
Plymouth Barracuda, a muscle car, reflects this perception in its
name. The song "Barracuda" by the band Heart also uses the image of
the fish to represent a deceitful and sinister lover.
Species
There are 26 known species:
Sharpfin barracuda, Sphyraena acutipinnis Day, 1876.
Guinean barracuda, Sphyraena afra Peters, 1844.
Pacific barracuda, Sphyraena argentea Girard, 1854.
Great barracuda, Sphyraena barracuda (Edwards in Catesby, 1771).
Northern sennet, Sphyraena borealis DeKay, 1842.
Yellowstripe barracuda, Sphyraena chrysotaenia Klunzinger, 1884.
Mexican barracuda, Sphyraena ensis Jordan & Gilbert, 1882.
Yellowtail barracuda, Sphyraena flavicauda Rüppell, 1838.
Bigeye barracuda, Sphyraena forsteri Cuvier, 1829.
Guachanche barracuda, Sphyraena guachancho Cuvier, 1829.
Heller's barracuda, Sphyraena helleri Jenkins, 1901.
Sphyraena iburiensis Doiuchi & Nakabo, 2005.
Pelican barracuda, Sphyraena idiastes Heller & Snodgrass, 1903.
Japanese barracuda, Sphyraena japonica Cuvier, 1829.
Pickhandle barracuda, Sphyraena jello Cuvier, 1829.
Lucas barracuda, Sphyraena lucasana Gill, 1863.
Australian barracuda, Sphyraena novaehollandiae Günther, 1860.
Obtuse barracuda, Sphyraena obtusata Cuvier, 1829.
Southern sennet, Sphyraena picudilla Poey, 1860.
Red barracuda, Sphyraena pinguis Günther, 1874.
Sawtooth barracuda, Sphyraena putnamae Jordan & Seale, 1905.
Blackfin barracuda, Sphyraena qenie Klunzinger, 1870.
European barracuda, Sphyraena sphyraena (Linnaeus, 1758).
Sphyraena tome Fowler, 1903.
Yellowmouth barracuda, Sphyraena viridensis Cuvier, 1829.
Sphyraena waitii Ogilby, 1908.
Source:
Wikipedia.org (c) 2009.
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