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🌊 Marine Least Concern 🎣 Game Fish 🌡️ Subtropical 🎣 Game Fish

Largehead hairtail

Trichiurus lepturus Linnaeus, 1758
Max Length
234 cm
Max Weight
5.0 kg
Lifespan
-
Trophic Level
4.4
Depth
0–589 m
Climate
Subtropical
Resilience
Medium
Vulnerability
52.00/100
Typical Length
100 cm
Depth Zone
-

📖 Overview

Generally over muddy bottoms of shallow coastal waters . Often enter estuaries . Juveniles feed mostly on euphausiids, small pelagic planktonic crustaceans and small fishes; adults feed mainly on fishes and occasionally on squids and crustaceans . Adults and juveniles have opposing complementary vertical diurnal feeding migration. Large adults usually feed near the surface during the daytime and migrate to the bottom at night. Juveniles and small adults form schools 100 m above the bottom during the daytime and form loose feeding aggregations at night near the surface. Pelagic eggs and larvae . Max weight of 1.5 kg given in Ref. 28023 seems too low. The current angling world record was caught in Rio de Janeiro's Guanabara Bay and weighed 3.69 kg. Commercial fisherman have caught fish of up to 5 kg (Capt. Eduardo Baumeier, pers. Comm., 2001). Marketed salted or dried and also frozen . Excellent taste when fried or grilled; also for sashimi when fresh.

Scientific Name
Trichiurus lepturus
Authority
Linnaeus, 1758
Habitat
Marine
Climate
Subtropical
IUCN Status
LC
Max Length
234 cm
Max Weight
5 kg
Depth Range
0–589 m
Latitude
54°S – 49°N
Trophic Level
4.4
Resilience
Medium
Vulnerability
52.00/100
Migration
Amphidromous
Salinity
30–40 ppt

🔬 Taxonomy

🐟 Physical Description

Dorsal spines (total): 3; Dorsal soft rays (total): 130 - 135; Anal soft rays: 100 - 105. Body extremely elongate, compressed and tapering to a point. Mouth large with a dermal process at the tip of each jaw. Dorsal fin relatively high; anal fin reduced to minute spinules usually embedded in the skin or slightly breaking through; anterior margin of pectoral fin spine not serrated. Pelvic and caudal fins absent. Lateral line beginning at the upper margin of the gill cover, running oblique to behind the tip of the pectoral fins, then straight close to the ventral contour. Fresh specimens steely blue with silvery reflections, becoming uniformly silvery gray sometime after death .: eel-like; Cross section: compressed.

🌀 Behaviour

Behavioural data for Largehead hairtail is currently being reviewed.

🦐 Diet

Diet information for Largehead hairtail is currently being compiled.

🥚 Reproduction

Size at Maturity
50.6cm TL

🌍 Habitat & Distribution

Marine; brackish; benthopelagic; amphidromous ; depth range 0 - 589 m , usually 100 - 350 m . Subtropical; 49°N - 54°S, 114°W - 180°E

🌿 Ecology

Zone Preferences
🌊 Marine 🌿 Brackish
Migration
Amphidromous
Trophic Level
4.4±0.4
🐠 Schooling
Food Items

fishes and occasionally on squids and crustaceans (Ref

📐 Morphometrics

Length–Weight Relationship: W = 0.00032 × L3.17 (TL)
Max TL
234cm
Max Weight
5,000g
Dorsal Spines
3
Dorsal Rays
133
Anal Rays
103

🌡️ Water Parameters & Tolerance

Salinity Range
30–40ppt

🛡️ Conservation Assessment

IUCN Category
Least Concern
Assessment Date
2013

📊 Population Risk & Fisheries

Population Resilience
Medium
Minimum doubling time
Fishing Vulnerability
52.00/100
Moderate-High vulnerability
Trophic Level
4.4
Apex / Top predator
Climate Zone
Subtropical
Latitude Range
49°N – 54°S
Described By
Linnaeus, 1758

🌐 Names & Taxonomy

Language Common Names
🇬🇧English Atlantic cutlass fish · Atlantic cutlassfish · Australian hairtail · Beltfish · Blade-fish · Common Hairtail · Cox's Hairtail · Cutlass Fish · Cutlass-fish · Grey Ribbon Fish · Hair tail · Hair-tail · Hairtail · Japanese Cutlassfish · Large Headed Hairtail · Large-head Ribbonfish · Large-headed Hairtail · Largehead hairtail · Largehead hairtail, Hairtail · Largeheaded Ribbonfish · Northern Hairtail · Pacific cutlassfish · Ribbon Fish · Silver Cutlassfish · Silverfish · Silvery Hairtail · Snakefish · Cutlassfish
🌍AFR Sweepstert
🇸🇦Arabic سمك الحزام · سمك القطلس الأطلسي · سمك القطلس المحيط الهادئ · سمك القطلس الياباني · سمك النصل · شعري الذيل الأسترالي · شعري الذيل الشمالي · شعري الذيل الفضي · شعري الذيل كبير الرأس · شعري الذيل كوكس
🌍BRE Sabrenn
🏳️Catalan Sabre cuafí
🌍CES tkaničnice atlantská
🇩🇰Danish Hårhale
🇩🇪German Degenfisch · Haarschwanz
🌍ELL Λέπτουρο σπαθόψαρο
🇫🇮Finnish Huotrakala
🇫🇷French Poisson Ceinture · Poisson Sabre · Poisson Sabre Commun · Poisson-sabre commun, Poisson-sabre · Sabre · poisson-sabre commun
🌍HEB רצוען דק-זנב
🌍IND Ikan Beledang · Layur
🇮🇹Italian Pesce coltello
🇯🇵Japanese タチウオ · 太刀魚
🇰🇷Korean 갈치
🌍MLT Xabla denbha rqiq
🇳🇱Dutch haarstaartdegenvis
🌍NNO trådstjert
🌍NOB trådstjert
🇳🇴Norwegian Trådstjert · Trådtjert
🇵🇱Polish Palasz
🇵🇹Portuguese Chibata · Espada-lírio · Lírio · Peixe-espada · Peixe-espada-lírio
🌍RON Peste sabie · Sabie
🇷🇺Russian Волосохвост обыкновенный · Обыкновенная рыба-сабля · обыкновенная сабля-рыба
🇪🇸Spanish Cinta · Cintilla · Corbata · Correa · Espada · Machete · Peje Espada · Pez Sable · Sable · Sabre · Savola · Tajalí · sable del Atlántico · sable del Pacífico
🌍SQI Peshk shirit · peshk thikë · peshku shirit
🌍SRP Zmijicnjak
🇸🇪Swedish Hårstjärt
🌍TEL సవళ్ళూ
🌍THA ปลาดาบเงินเล็ก
🌍TUR Kilkuyruk · kilkuyruk baligi
🌍WLN Pexhon-cingue
🇨🇳Chinese 天竺帶魚 · 油帶 · 白帶魚 · 白魚 · 肥帶 · 裙帶 · 高鰭帶魚

🗺️ Global Occurrence Map

Occurrence records from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) - 923 records indexed .

Occurrence density from GBIF View GBIF records ↗

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