''Sphyraena chrysotaenia'', the yellowstripe barracuda, is a species of predatory, ray finned fish from the family

Sphyraenidae A barracuda, or cuda for short, 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 ...

which is found in the Indo-West Pacific region. It has entered the Mediterranean Sea from the Red Sea through the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

as a Lessepesian migrant and is now an important species in the fisheries of the eastern Mediterranean.

Description

''Sphyraena chrysotaenia'' has a very elongated, torpedo-shaped body, typical of the barracudas, with two well-separated dorsal fins, the first

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 conv ...

has with five spiny rays, with the first ray being the longest, the rays then progressively decrease in size posteriorly. The second dorsal fin has its origin in front of the origin of the

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

. The tail is markedly forked. The

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

sits directly below the origin of the first dorsal fin with the

pelvic fin Pelvic fins or ventral fins are paired fins located on the ventral surface of fish. The paired pelvic fins are homologous to the hindlimbs of tetrapods. Structure and function Structure In actinopterygians, the pelvic fin consists of two en ...

below it. The large head is conical with a large eye, pointed snout and slightly projecting lower jaw. The jaws and palate are lines with large canine shaped teeth which vary in size. The small scales are

cycloid In geometry, a cycloid is the curve traced by a point on a circle as it rolls along a straight line without slipping. A cycloid is a specific form of trochoid and is an example of a roulette, a curve generated by a curve rolling on another curve ...

in form and the lateral line is almost straight.Atlas of Exotic Fishes in the Mediterranean Sea (''Sphyraena chrysotaenia''). 2nd Edition. 2021. 366p. CIESM Publishers, Paris, Monaco. https://ciesm.org/atlas/fishes_2nd_edition/Sphyraena_chrysotaenia.pdf The

preoperculum This glossary of ichthyology is a list of definitions of terms and concepts used in ichthyology, the study of fishes. A B C ...

is covered in scales and its lower posterior margin is concave. They are coloured brown-grey above and silvery below, a dusky stripe runs from the snout through centre of the eye, above the base of the pectoral fin to base of the tail, this stripe may show a yellowish tint on the head. The distal portion of first dorsal and caudal fins is blackish, the second dorsal, pectoral and base of the caudal fins are yellowish. They have been recorded up to 32 cm standard length but average 20–25 cm.

Distribution

''Sphyraena chrysotenia'' has an

Indo-West Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

distribution occurring from the Red Sea and

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

east through the Indian Ocean to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and northern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It was first recorded in the Mediterranean Sea off

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

in 1931, and is nom spreading westward, reaching

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

by 1993 and the south

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

by 2001.

Biology

''Sphyraena chrysotenia'' forms large schools in inshore waters in the pelagic and demersal zones to a depth of 50m. It is piscivorous, catching its food near the bottom and feeds mainly on schooling fish such as ''

Sardinella aurita The round sardinella (''Sardinella aurita'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus ''Sardinella'' found in both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. ''S. aurita'' went through a large boom in catch population around 1990 ...

'' and '' Engraulis encrasicolus'', but will also feed on

crustacea Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean gro ...

ns. The spawning season in the Mediterranean runs from April to September, or August to November in the central Mediterranean and the eggs and fry are planktonic, the juveniles are often recorded in very shallow waters. ''S. chrysotaenia'' is a relatively short-lived species with a maximum age of 5 years old. ''S. chrysotaenia'' reaches sexual maturity at a total length of 195mm for females and 197.1mm for males, usually at 2 years old. An analysis of the parasites of ''Sphyraena chrysotenia'' in the Mediterranean showed that the fish, after its invasion of this Sea, lost at least two parasite species, co-introduced three parasite species and acquired six native parasite species from its native congener ''

Sphyraena sphyraena ''Sphyraena sphyraena'', also known as the European barracuda or Mediterranean barracuda, is a ray-finned predatory fish of the Mediterranean basin and the warmer waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Description ''Sphyraena sphyraena'' has a long, com ...

''.

Fisheries

''Sphyraena chrysotenia'' is now the most common species of barracuda caught by artisanal fisheries in Lebanon, outnumbering the other landed species by 70%. It can be caught in considerable quantities in inshore waters using purse-seine nets, gillnets and by trawling. It was first recorded in the

Gulf of Gabes A gulf is a large inlet from the ocean into the landmass, typically with a narrower opening than a bay, but that is not observable in all geographic areas so named. The term gulf was traditionally used for large highly-indented navigable bodie ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

in 2002 and now forms an important part of the total fishery. In the

Gulf of Suez The Gulf of Suez ( ar, خليج السويس, khalīǧ as-suwais; formerly , ', "Sea of Calm") is a gulf at the northern end of the Red Sea, to the west of the Sinai Peninsula. Situated to the east of the Sinai Peninsula is the smaller Gulf of ...

studies showed indications of overexploitation of the stock as fish being landed were too small to be sexually mature.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q941175 Sphyraenidae Fish described in 1884 Fish of Europe Fish of the Red Sea