Common Name
Flying Halfbeak
Year Described
Poey, 1868
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 21-25
Anal Fin: 19-24
Pectoral Fin: 7-9
Pelvic Fin: 6
Gill Rakers: 26-35
Vertebrae: 71-73
Lower jaw extremely elongate. Pectoral fins noticeably elongate. Anal and dorsal fins with long bases. Lower caudal lobe enlarged.
Color
Body bright silvery with an olive back. Lateral stripe silvery. Lower jaw often banded.
Size
Maximum size to 281mm TL.
Habitat
Oceanic; usually near the surface and often gliding for short distances.
Range
Massachusetts to S. Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.
References
Collette, B.B. 2002. Hemiramphidae (pp 1135-1144). In: Carpenter. 2002. The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Vol. 2: Bony fishes part 1 (Acipenseridae-Grammatidae). FAO Species Identification Guides for Fisheries Purposes. American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special Publication No. 5.
McEachran, J.D. and J.D. Fechhelm. 1998. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Volume 1: Myxiniformes to Gasterosteiformes. University of Texas Press, Austin. i-viii + 1-1112.