Barracuda
| Barracuda Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| Great barracuda hovering in the current at the Paradise Reef, Cozumel, Mexico | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Carangiformes |
| Suborder: | Centropomoidei |
| Family: | Rafinesque, 1815 |
| Genus: | J. T. Klein, 1778 |
| Type species | |
| Esox spet (Linnaeus, 1758)
| |
| Synonyms | |
| |
A barracuda is a large, predatory, ray-finned, saltwater fish of the genus Sphyraena, the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1815.[2] It is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide ranging from the eastern border of the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, on its western border the Caribbean Sea, and in tropical areas of the Pacific Ocean. Barracudas reside near the top of the water and near coral reefs and sea grasses.[3] Barracudas are often targeted by sport-fishing enthusiasts.
- ^ Sepkoski, J. (2002). "A compendium of fossil marine animal genera". Bulletins of American Paleontology. 363: 1–560. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23.
- ^ N. Bailly (2015). "Sphyraenidae Rafinesque, 1810". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
- ^ Millburn, N. "The Great Barracuda's Diet". Animals - PawNation. Archived from the original on 2013-12-03.