‹ Fish Finder· #506
Blackfin Barracuda
Sphyraena qenie
Bislamabarakuta— names this kind of animal, not this species alone
- Habitat
- Open water
- Max size
- 1.7 m
- Depth
- 0-100 m
- Family
- Sphyraenidae
The blackfin barracuda, also known as the chevron barracuda, is known for its aggressive, predatory personality.
Adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Easily confused with
Side by side, with what tells them apart.
Both are long, silvery hunters banded in dark bars. Wahoo's bars are cobalt blue and stand upright, 24 to 30 of them, below an iridescent blue-green back, and its snout is as long as the rest of the head; it roams open water alone or in loose groups. Blackfin Barracuda's 18 to 22 bars bend into forward-pointing chevrons, its tail is blackish, its lower jaw juts past the upper, and it hangs in large, near-stationary schools by the reef.
See the Wahoo →
Both school in open water off the reef. Blackfin Barracuda has 18 to 22 dark chevron bars down its sides, pointing forward, and a blackish tail. Bigeye Barracuda is plain silver with no bars, a noticeably large eye, and a black spot at the base of the pectoral fin.
See the Bigeye Barracuda →