Sailfin flyingfish (Parexocoetus brachypterus)

Scientific name: Parexocoetus brachypterus Richardson, 1846

Sailfin flyingfish (Parexocoetus brachypterus)

The Sailfin flyingfish (Parexocoetus brachypterus) is a marine fish of the family Exocoetidae.

Biology

Occurs in coastal waters, rare in the open ocean. Capable of leaping out of the water and gliding for considerable distances above the surface. 3-4 individuals aggregate during breeding. Carnivorous. Not important as food fish, but occasionally taken by fisheries.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Parexocoetus brachypterus
Family
Exocoetidae (Flyingfishes)
Order
Beloniformes (Needle fishes)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
20.0
Common length
16.0
Depth range
0–20 m (0–66 ft)
Environment
Marine; pelagic-neritic; oceanodromous; depth range 0 - 20 m
Climate
Subtropical
Distribution
Indo-Pacific: widespread from East Africa, including the Red Sea to southern Japan, Hawaii, the Marquesas, and Queensland (Australia); separate population in the eastern tropical Pacific (Bay of Panama). Western Atlantic: northeastern Florida, USA and the Bahamas to Brazil; common in Caribbean Sea and Lesser Antilles area; less common in the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf Stream and the western Sargasso Sea. Eastern Atlantic: Guinea to Angola.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Uses
Fisheries: minor commercial
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

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