Sphyraena obtusata
Striped seapike | Blunt Barracuda | Blunt Jawed Seapike | Green-and-gold Seapike | Highfin Barracuda | Obtuse Barracuda | Pygmy Barracuda | Shortjawed Barracuda | Shortjawed Seapike | Striped Barracuda | Yellowstripe Barracuda | Yellowtail Barracuda
Similar Species
Distribution
Temperate Australasia, Tropical Indo-Pacific
Description
Long silver body, usually with dark stripes along sides, and often with yellow tail. Distinguished from S. flavicauda (Yellowtail Barracuda) on basis of gill rakers, length of dorsal and pectoral fins, though best chance of identifying in field if spiny dorsal fin is extended - taller than soft dorsal fin in this species, approximately same height as soft dorsal fin in S. flavicauda.
Information
Max Size: 55 cm
Sea Temperature Range: 17.4-31.4°C
Depth: 20-120 m
Habitat Generalization Index: 0.46
Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.
Conservation and Rarity
IUCN Status: Not Evaluated
Occurrence: Infrequent (4.7% of sites)
Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
Abundance: Many (31 per transect)
Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.
Edit by: RD Stuart-Smith, GJ Edgar, AJ Green, IV Shaw. 2015. Tropical Marine Fishes of Australia. Reed New Holland