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Great Barracuda

Fish

The great barracuda is a large predatory fish found in tropical and subtropical coastal waters worldwide, particularly common around coral reefs, seagrass beds and mangroves in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Indo-Pacific regions, with adults capable of reaching nearly two metres in length. It has a long, torpedo-shaped body built for bursts of speed, a protruding lower jaw and rows of large, prominent teeth that give it a fearsome appearance, and it is an ambush predator, using sudden acceleration to strike smaller fish, its primary prey. Great barracuda are often seen hovering motionless in open water or near structure before launching a rapid attack, and their curiosity and attraction to shiny, reflective objects, such as jewelry or fishing lures, occasionally leads to encounters with divers and swimmers, though unprovoked attacks on humans are rare. In some regions, larger great barracuda can accumulate ciguatera toxin from their diet of reef fish, making them potentially unsafe to eat despite being a popular sport fish elsewhere.

Facts
Classification
Diet
Carnivore 1
System (Realm)
Marine 2
Relationship to People
Hunted or Fished 1
Living or Extinct
Yes 3
Comparison
NatureServe Rank
GNR Unranked 4
CITES Appendix
Not Listed 5
Identification
Distinguishing Appearance
Blue gray above, fading to silvery and chalky white below, an elongated fish with powerful jaws, usually 60 to 100 centimeters long. 1
Scientific Name
Sphyraena barracuda 1
Conservation Status
Least Concern 1
Connections

Child Taxon Of

Perciformes, Taxa
Source Great Barracuda (Wikidata)

In Biome

Marine, Biomes
Source Great Barracuda (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases

Found In

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Sources
1. Great Barracuda (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Introduction, first sentence
    Sphyraena barracuda, commonly known as the great barracuda, is a species of barracuda
  • Description section, color pattern sentence
    The great barracuda is blue gray above, fading to silvery and chalky-white below.
  • Lead
    They are voracious predators and hunt by ambush.
  • Relationship with humans
    They are a popular target for recreational fishing, due to the strong fight they put up when hooked.
  • Infobox: status
    LC
  • In Biome: Marine, Wikipedia 'Great barracuda': found in subtropical oceans worldwide
View the Source
2. GBIF Species API
GBIF Species APIView the Source
3. Great Barracuda (Wikidata)
Wikidata
  • Statements section, conservation status (P141)
    IUCN Red List conservation status (Wikidata property P141): least concern.
  • Child Taxon Of: Perciformes, Wikidata parent-taxon (P171) chain
View the Source
4. NatureServe Explorer: Sphyraena barracuda
NatureServe ExplorerGlobal rank (roundedGRank)
Quote, Global rank (roundedGRank)
"roundedGRank": "GNR"
View the Source
5. UNEP-WCMC Species+ database (CITES Secretariat): Species+: Perciformes
UNEP-WCMC Species+ database (CITES Secretariat)Species+ taxon_concepts, id 96
Quote, Species+ taxon_concepts, id 96
"cites_listing":"I/II/III/NC","eu_listing":"A/B/C/D/NC","higher_taxa":{"kingdom":"Animalia","phylum":"Chordata","class":"Actinopteri","order":"Perciformes","family":null},"synonyms":[],"common_names":[{"name":"鲈形目","language":"ZH"}],"cites_listings":[]
View the Source
Wikidata: Great Barracuda
Wikidata Q2306485, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
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