Barracuda

]]

A **barracuda** is a ray finned-fish that is about 6 feet in length. It is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide. 

It is of the genus ***Sphyraena***, the only genus in the family **Sphyraenidae**. It is famous for its intimidating and ferocious behavior. It is the reason that divers take off any shiny or glittery bracelets in the water. They eat fish that are silver in color, which may cause them to attack someone if they are wearing any shimmering objects.  

These fish usually stay near the top of the water around sea grass and coral reefs.  

## Description 
Barracudas have long bodies and sharp teeth like a piranha. Their gill covers are covered with small scales and they have far away dorsal fins. They have a large swim bladder.

## Species list 
### Extant species 
Barracudas have 29 extant species:

* *Sphyraena acutipinnis* F. Day, 1876 (Sharpfin barracuda)
* *Sphyraena afra* W. K. H. Peters, 1844 (Guinean barracuda)
* *Sphyraena arabiansis* E. M. Abdussamad, Ratheesh, Thangaraja, Bineesh & D. Prakashan, 2015 (Arabian barracuda)
* *Sphyraena argentea* Girard, 1854 (Pacific barracuda)
* *Sphyraena barracuda* (G. Edwards, 1771) (Great barracuda)
* *Sphyraena borealis* DeKay, 1842 (Northern sennet)
* *Sphyraena chrysotaenia* Klunzinger, 1884 (Yellowstripe barracuda)
* *Sphyraena ensis* D. S. Jordan & C. H. Gilbert, 1882 (Mexican barracuda)
* *Sphyraena flavicauda* Rüppell, 1838 (Yellowtail barracuda)
* *Sphyraena forsteri* G. Cuvier, 1829 (Bigeye barracuda)
* *Sphyraena guachancho* G. Cuvier, 1829 (Guachanche barracuda)
* *Sphyraena helleri* O. T. Jenkins, 1901 (Heller's barracuda)
* *Sphyraena iburiensis* Doiuchi & Nakabo, 2005
* *Sphyraena idiastes* Heller & Snodgrass, 1903 (Pelican barracuda)
* *Sphyraena intermedia* Pastore, 2009
* *Sphyraena japonica* Bloch & J. G. Schneider, 1801 (Japanese barracuda)
* *Sphyraena jello* G. Cuvier, 1829 (Pickhandle barracuda)
* *Sphyraena lucasana* T. N. Gill, 1863 (Lucas barracuda)
* *Sphyraena novaehollandiae* Günther, 1860 (Australian barracuda)
* *Sphyraena obtusata* G. Cuvier, 1829 (Obtuse barracuda)
* *Sphyraena picudilla* Poey, 1860 (Southern sennet)
* *Sphyraena pinguis* Günther, 1874 (Red barracuda)
* *Sphyraena putnamae* D. S. Jordan & Seale, 1905 (Sawtooth barracuda)
* *Sphyraena qenie* Klunzinger, 1870 (Blackfin barracuda)
* *Sphyraena sphyraena* Linnaeus, 1758 (type) (European barracuda)
* *Sphyraena tome* Fowler, 1903
* *Sphyraena viridensis* G. Cuvier, 1829 (Yellowmouth barracuda)
* *Sphyraena waitii* W. Ogilby, 1908
*]]

### Extinct species 
There are also extinct species:

* †*Sphyraena* *amici* Agassiz, 1843
* †*Sphyraena bognorensis* Casier, 1966
* †*Sphyraena bolcensis* Agassiz, 1844
* †*Sphyraena crassidens* de Beaufort, 1926
* †*Sphyraena croatica* Gorjanović-Kramberger, 1882
* †*Sphyraena cunhai* da Silva Santos & Travassos, 1960
* †*Sphyraena egleri* da Silva Santos & Travassos, 1960
* †*Sphyraena fajumensis* (Dames, 1883)
* †*Sphyraena hansfuchsi* (Schubert, 1906)
* †*Sphyraena kugleri* Casier, 1966
* †*Sphyraena longimana* Arambourg, 1966
* †*Sphyraena lugardi*  White, 1926
* †*Sphyraena major* Leidy, 1855
* †*Sphyraena malembeensis* Dartevelle & Casier, 1943
* †*Sphyraena pannonica* Weiler, 1938
* †*Sphyraena senni* Casier, 1966
* †*Sphyraena sternbergensis* Winkler, 1875
* †*Sphyraena striata* Casier, 1946
* †*Sphyraena substriata* (Münster, 1846)
* †*Sphyraena suessi* Gorjanović-Kramberger, 1882
* †*Sphyraena tsengi* Tao, 1993
* †*Sphyraena tyrolensis* von Meyer, 1863
* †*Sphyraena viannai* Dartevelle & Casier, 1949
* †“*Sphyraena*” *viennensis* Steindachner, 1859
* †*Sphyraena weberi* Leriche, 1954
* †*Sphyraena winkleri* Lawley, 1876

]]

## How they attack prey 
These ferocious creatures attack prey by surprising them. They also release short bursts of speed up to 27 mph (43 km/h).

## Human interactions 
Barracudas sometimes attack people, especially when they get shiny jewelry. Luckily, these attacks are rare and are usually caused by poor visibility.

## Related pages 
* Sphyraena intermedia
* Sphyraena barracuda
* Sphyraena sphyraena
* List of fish common names
* Parasphyraena – a related genus from the Miocene of Azerbaijan

## References 
# "Barracuda | fish". *Encyclopedia Britannica*. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
# "Barracuda Fish Facts". *AtlanticPanic*.
# "Jumping barracuda injures kayaker off Florida Keys". *Reuters*.
# Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2019). "*Sphyraena acutipinnis''" in FishBase. August 2019 version.

]]

## Other websites 
*  on Wikidata