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Marine - Barracuda

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The gill-covers do not have spines and are covered with small scales. The two  dorsal fins are widely separated, with the first having five spines and the second having one spine and nine soft rays. The second dorsal fin equals the anal fin in size and is situated more or less above it.

In general, the barracuda's coloration is dark green or grey above chalky-white below. This varies somewhat. Sometimes there is a row of darker cross-bars or black spots on each side. The fins may be yellowish or dusky. Barracudas only live in oceans.

Barracudas occur both alone and in schools around reefs, but also appear in open seas. They are ravenous predators and pursue their prey using a classic example of lie-in-wait or ambush. They rely on surprise and short bursts of speed (up to 27mph, 43 km/h) to overrun their prey, sacrificing maneuverability.

The larger barracudas are more or less solitary in their habits. Young fish frequently congregate in shoals. Their food is composed almost totally of fishes of all kinds. Large barracudas, when gorged, may attempt to herd a shoal of prey fish in shallow water, where they guard over them until they are ready for another meal.

Common Name - Barracuda

Class - Actinopterygii 
Order - Perciformes

Family - Sphyraenidae

The barracuda is  notable for its large size (up to 6 ft or more in length and up to a foot in width) and fearsome appearance. The body is long, fairly compressed, and covered with small, smooth scales. Barracudas possess strong, fang-like teeth. The head is quite large and is pointed in appearance. Barracudas possess  powerful jaws. The lower jaw of the large mouth juts out beyond the upper.    

It is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide.

Barracudas and Humans

Barracudas have long had a bad reputation as being dangerous to humans. However, unprovoked attacks on humans are extremely rare and millions of drivers,  snorkelers and swimmers spend time with them in the water without any incidents. Barracudas sometimes do follow snorkelers and scuba divers across a reef, which can make one feel uncomfortable, but they are harmless unless provoked. Because barracudas have a scavenger-like tendency, it has been theorized that barracudas tend to follow snorkelers because they believe that the snorkelers might be large predators and if they were to capture prey it would be easy for the barracudas to scavenge whatever may be left behind.

Being formidable hunters, they should be respected, as barracudas are perfectly capable of defending themselves against humans that harass them. Hand-feeding or trying to touch them is strongly discouraged. Spear-fishing around barracudas can also be quite dangerous, as they are strongly attracted by the wounded fish.

There have been isolated cases where barracudas did bite a human, but these incidents are rare and are believed to be caused by bad visibility. Barracudas will stop after the first bite as humans are not their normal food source.

Information on this page will be added as more research details are discovered