Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes about 10 species. A marlin has an elongated body, a
spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...
-like
snout or bill, and a long, rigid
dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates within various taxa of the animal kingdom. Many species of animals possessing dorsal fins are not particularly closely related to each other, though through c ...
which extends forward to form a
crest
Crest or CREST may refer to:
Buildings
*The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York
*"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York
*Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...
. Its
common name is thought to derive from its resemblance to a sailor's
marlinspike
A marlinspike (, sometimes spelled marlin spike, marlinespike, or rchaicmarlingspike) is a tool used in marine ropework. Shaped in the form of a polished metal cone tapered to a rounded or flattened point, it is used in such tasks as unlaying ...
. Marlins are among the fastest marine swimmers.
However, greatly exaggerated speeds are often claimed in popular literature, based on unreliable or outdated reports.
The larger species include the
Atlantic blue marlin
The Atlantic blue marlin (''Makaira nigricans'') is a species of marlin endemic to the Atlantic Ocean. It is closely related to, and usually considered conspecific with, the Indo-Pacific blue marlin, then simply called blue marlin. Some author ...
, ''Makaira nigricans'', which can reach in length and in weight and the
black marlin
The black marlin (''Istiompax indica'') is a species of marlin found in tropical and subtropical areas of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. With a maximum published length of and weight of , it is one of the largest marlins and also one of the la ...
, ''Istiompax indica'', which can reach in excess of in length and in weight. They are popular
sporting fish in tropical areas. The Atlantic blue marlin and the
white marlin
The white marlin (''Kajikia albida''), also known as Atlantic white marlin, marlin, skilligalee, is a species of billfish that lives in the epipelagic zone of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean. They are found between the latitudes of 45 ...
are endangered owing to
overfishing.
Classification
The marlins are
Istiophoriform fish, most closely related to the
swordfish, which is the sole member of
Xiphiidae
Swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as broadbills in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordf ...
. The
carangiformes
Carangiformes is an order of the ray-finned fishes. The order is part of a clade which is a sister clade to the Ovalentaria, the other orders in the clade being Synbranchiformes, Anabantiformes, Istiophoriformes and Pleuronectiformes. The Caran ...
is believed to be the second-closest clade to the Marlins. Although previously thought to be closely related to
Scombridae
The mackerel, tuna, and bonito family, Scombridae, includes many of the most important and familiar food fishes. The family consists of 51 species in 15 genera and two subfamilies. All species are in the subfamily Scombrinae, except the butterf ...
, genetic analysis only shows a slight relationship.
Genera
Timeline of genera
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from: -65.5 till: -55.8 color:paleocene text:Paleocene
The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''pal ...
from: -55.8 till: -33.9 color:eocene text:Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', " ...
from: -33.9 till: -23.03 color:oligocene text: Oligocene
from: -23.03 till: -5.332 color:miocene text:Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
from: -5.332 till: -2.588 color:pliocene text: Plio.
from: -2.588 till: -0.0117 color:pleistocene text:Pleist.
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...
from: -0.0117 till: 0 color:holocene text: H.
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from: -65.5 till: -23.03 color:paleogene text: Paleogene
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color:miocene bar:NAM3 from: -15.97 till: 0 text: Istiophorus
The sailfish is one or two species of marine fish in the genus ''Istiophorus'', which belong to the family Istiophoridae (marlins). They are predominantly blue to gray in colour and have a characteristically large dorsal fin known as the sa ...
color:miocene bar:NAM4 from: -11.608 till: 0 text: Makaira
''Makaira'' (Latin via Greek language, Greek: ''μαχαίρα'' "sword") is a genus of marlin in the family Istiophoridae. It includes the Atlantic blue marlin, Atlantic blue, and Indo-Pacific blue marlin, Indo-Pacific blue marlins. In the past ...
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The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''pal ...
from: -55.8 till: -33.9 color:eocene text:Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', " ...
from: -33.9 till: -23.03 color:oligocene text: Oligocene
from: -23.03 till: -5.332 color:miocene text:Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
from: -5.332 till: -2.588 color:pliocene text: Plio.
from: -2.588 till: -0.0117 color:pleistocene text:Pleist.
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...
from: -0.0117 till: 0 color:holocene text: H.
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from: -65.5 till: -23.03 color:paleogene text: Paleogene
from: -23.03 till: -2.588 color:neogene text: Neogene
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In literature
![Welcome to Dare County marlin - Stierch](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/Welcome_to_Dare_County_marlin_-_Stierch.jpg)
In the
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
-winning author
Ernest Hemingway's 1952 novel ''
The Old Man and the Sea
''The Old Man and the Sea'' is a novella written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Cayo Blanco (Cuba), and published in 1952. It was the last major work of fiction written by Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. O ...
'', the central character of the work is an aged Cuban fisherman who, after 84 days without success on the water, heads out to sea to break his run of bad luck. On the 85th day, Santiago, the old fisherman, hooks a resolute marlin; what follows is a great struggle between man, sea creature, and the elements.
Frederick Forsyth
Frederick McCarthy Forsyth (born 25 August 1938) is an English novelist and journalist. He is best known for thrillers such as ''The Day of the Jackal'', ''The Odessa File'', '' The Fourth Protocol'', '' The Dogs of War'', ''The Devil's Alter ...
's story "The Emperor", in the collection ''
No Comebacks
''No Comebacks'' is a 1982 collection of ten short stories by English writer Frederick Forsyth. Each story takes place in a different setting and ends with a plot twist. Several of them involve a central male character without any apparent stre ...
'', tells of a bank manager named Murgatroyd, who catches a marlin and is acknowledged by the islanders of
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...
as a master fisherman..
See also
*
Marlin fishing
*
Sailfish
The sailfish is one or two species of marine fish in the genus ''Istiophorus'', which belong to the family Istiophoridae ( marlins). They are predominantly blue to gray in colour and have a characteristically large dorsal fin known as the ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
"'Ghost Fish' Revelation May Alter Marlin's Status"from
National Public Radio
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
Marlin Fishingfrom
FishingBooker
FishingBooker is an online marketplace specializing in booking charter boats for recreational fishing. The company was founded in Belgrade, Serbia, by CEO Vukan Simic, and is headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia.
The company has been described a ...
{{Taxonbar, from=Q30961
Hawaiian cuisine
Sport fish
Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque