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Pelagic Fishes
Family Scombridae
Tunas &
Mackerels
Acanthocybium solandri
Corsair, Midway Atoll
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Frigate Point, Midway Atoll
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Honolulu Fish Auction |
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WAHOO
ONO Sawara
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Common along coastal dropoffs. An excellent
food fish with firm light flesh. Tropical & subtropical seas
worldwide. Attains 99 inches & 183 pounds. |

Euthynnus affinis
LITTLE
TUNA
KAWAKAWA Suma
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Common in near-shore surface waters. Has dark
oily flesh of minor commercial importance. Body robust, back with
wavy lines, breast usually has several dark spots. Attains 39
inches & 30 pounds. Indo-Pacific. |

Katsuwonus pelamis
SKIPJACK TUNA
AKU
Katsuo
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Common in surface waters of tropical & warm
temperate seas worldwide. Important for commercial fisheries, its
dark red flesh is sold as canned tuna. Body fusiform, belly with
four or five dark stripes. Attains 12 years of age, 43 inches
& 76 pounds. |

Thunnus albacares
YELLOWFIN TUNA AHI Kihada
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Common in surface waters of tropical &
subtropical seas worldwide except the Mediterranean. Important for
commercial & sport fisheries its red flesh is canned as 'light
tuna'. Body fusiform, belly with neat alternating rows of dots and
dashes. Second dorsal & anal fins of large adults extremely
long, pectoral fin does not extend beyond the trailing edge of the
second dorsal fin. Attains 8 years of age, 94 inches & 660
pounds. |

Thunnus obesus
BIGEYE TUNA AHI PO'ONUI
Mebachi
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Common in cooler subsurface waters of tropical &
subtropical seas worldwide except the Mediterranean. Important for
commercial fisheries its fatty red flesh is highly sought for sashimi or
canned as 'light tuna'. Body & head robust, belly with light
irregular blotches. Second dorsal & anal fins of large adults
short. Attains 11 years of age, 98 inches & 685 pounds. |

Thunnus alalunga
ALBACORE 'TOMBO
AHI' AHI PALAHA Binnaga
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A common species highly sought for its light pink
flesh, marketed as white tuna or tombo ahi. Pectoral fins
extremely long, ventral finlets gray. Attains 50 inches and 125
pounds. Worldwide in warm & temperate seas, prefers
temperature around 60 degrees F. |

Family Gempylidae
Snake Mackerels
| Snake Mackerels inhabit mid-water depths of the open ocean, migrating
toward the surface at night to feed upon fishes & planktonic
invertebrates. They are landed as bycatch on tuna longline
vessels. |
Lepidocybium
flavobrunneum
SMITH'S ESCOLAR
'SUPER WHITE TUNA' WALU
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Inhabits the continental slope & seamounts of the
from 600 to 3500 feet. Unique undulating lateral line. Very
oily white flesh is delicious but causes diarrhea if more than 6 ounces
is consumed. Tropical & temperate Pacific, Indian &
Atlantic Ocean. Attains 80 inches & 100 pounds. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escolar |

Gempylus serpens
BC Museum, Victoria, Canada
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SNAKE MACKEREL HAULIULI
Kurotachikamasu
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Blue above & silver below. Occurs from the
surface to 1000 feet. Attains at least 5 feet. Tropical
& temperate seas worldwide. |

Family Istiophoridae
Billfishes
| True billfishes have an upper jaw roughly cylindrical in
cross-section. They inhabit well-lit surface waters of the open
sea and feed on fishes during the day. Highly sought by sport
fishers but not highly regarded as food, as the flesh of most species is
dry & tough. |
Istiophorus platypterus
SAILFISH 'AU LEPE
Bashokajiki
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Inhabits coastal waters of the tropical &
temperate Pacific & Indian Ocean. Rarely seen in Hawaii.
Attains 137 inches & 221 pounds. |

Makaira
nigricans
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Honolulu Fish Auction
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PACIFIC BLUE MARLIN
'AU Kajiki
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A common pelagic species around Hawaii.
Pectoral fins able to fold against the body unlike the Black Marlin, Makaira
indica. Dorsal fin shorter than body depth. Body near
anal fin thick, not compressed as in the Striped
Marlin, Tetrapterus audax. Tropical & subtropical
Pacific & Indian Ocean. Attains 197 inches & 1998 pounds,
28 years of age. |

Tetrapterus audax
Honolulu Fish Auction |
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STRIPED MARLIN
'AU NAIRAGI Makajiki
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Most common near subtropical oceanic islands of the
Indo-Pacific. Dorsal fin taller than body depth, body strongly
compressed near anal fin. Excellent food fish. Attains 165
inches & 979 pounds. |

Tetrapterus angustirostris
Honolulu Fish Auction |
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SHORTBILLED SPEARFISH
HEBI 'AU Furaikajiki
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Inhabits coastal waters of the
tropical & temperate Indo-Pacific. Upper jaw just slightly
longer than lower, lacks vertical stripes on body. Excellent food
fish. Attains 91 inches & 115 pounds. |

Family Xiphiidae
Broadbill Swordfish
Xiphias gladius
BROADBILL SWORDFISH
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Inhabits sunlit depths of the open ocean, feeding
primarily at night. Upper jaw extremely long, flattened to form a
double-edged sword, eyes large, single keel along peduncle. An
excellent food fish depleted due to over-harvesting. Warm &
temperate seas worldwide. Attains 179 inches & 1433 pounds. |

Family Coryphaenidae
Mahimahi
Coryphaena hippurus
Male, FAD, Midway Atoll
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Females |
Females, Honolulu Fish Auction |
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DOLPHINFISH MAHIMAHI Shiira
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Common in tropical & subtropical seas
worldwide. Often found near floating objects. Males have
square forehead, females round. Excellent food fish. Attains
83 inches, 88 pounds, 4 years. |

Family Lampridae
Moonfish
Lampris guttatus
Female
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Honolulu Fish Auction |
Male |
Male |
Female |
Female |
Male |
Male |
MOONFISH OPAH Aka-Manbou
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Inhabits open ocean depths from 300 to 1500 feet,
migrating toward the surface to feed on zooplankton at night.
Subtropical & temperate seas worldwide. Landed as bycatch by
tuna longline vessels. Excellent eating, with sections of moist
pink, orange & red flesh suitable for different methods of
preparation. Attains 78 inches & 595 pounds. |

Family
Bramidae
Pomfrets
Taractichthys steindachneri
SICKLE POMFRET MONCHONG
Hirojiro-manzaiuo
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Inhabits open ocean depths from 150 to 3000 feet,
migrating toward the surface to feed on zooplankton at night.
Armor-like scales, white margin on caudal fin, plate-like ribs.
Indo-Pacific. Landed as bycatch by tuna longline vessels.
Excellent eating, with oily light flesh. Attains 24 inches &
24 pounds, 8 years. |

Brama sp.
Victoria NH Museum, BC |
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POMFRET
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One of several bathypelagic
members of the genus from the Indo-Pacific. |

Family Exocoetidae
Flyingfishes
Cheilopogon spilonotopterus
STAINED or BLEEKER'S FLYINGFISH
MALOLO
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Common species with relatively long head, dark
pectoral fins & dark blotch on dorsal fin. Attains 15
inches. Formerly known as Cypselurus spilonotopterus.
Indo-Pacific & Tropical Eastern Pacific. |

Exocoetus volitans
TROPICAL TWO-WINGED or LINNE'S FLYINGFISH
MALOLO Idaten-tobiuo
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Common in tropical & subtropical seas
worldwide. Large pelvic fins also used while gliding.
Attains 12 inches. |

EASTERN PACIFIC
Cheilopogon
pinnatibarbatus californicus
Rock Quarry, Catalina Island, California |
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CALIFORNIA FLYINGFISH
PEZ VOLADOR
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Common in surface waters from Oregon to Outer Baja
California. Attains 15 inches. |

Family Nomeidae
Driftfishes
Psenes cyanophrys
Corsair Mooring, Oahu |
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FRECKLED DRIFTFISH
| Found near buoys and floating debris offshore.
Attains 9
inches. Has horizontal lines composed of small spots.
Worldwide in warm seas. |

Cubiceps
paradoxus
Honolulu Fish Auction |
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LONGFIN CIGARFISH
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Inhabits midwater depths in the open ocean feeding
upon salps at night. Pectoral fins extend past the origin of the
anal fin. Attains 40 inches. Central North Pacific. |

Family Myctophidae
Lanternfishes
| Lanternfishes inhabit midwater depths of the open ocean and make a
nightly migration toward the surface to feed upon zooplankton.
They employ light-emitting bacteria in special cells along the sides and
belly to create a pale green light to hide their silhouette from
predators below. They are among the most numerous animals in the
ocean. |
Diaphus fragilis
Makaha, Oahu
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FRAGILE LANTERNFISH
Kumadori-hadaka
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Occurs at midwater depths from 50 to 4000 feet,
migrating toward the surface at night to feed. Tropical &
subtropical seas worldwide. Attains 4 inches. |

Family Trichiuridae
Assurger anzac
RAZORBACK SCABBARDFISH
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Inhabits subsurface waters of the open ocean at
depths between 500 to 1200 feet. Occasionally captured on tuna
longlines. Attains 7 feet. Temperate & subtropical
waters worldwide. |

Family
Echeneidae
Remoras, Sharksuckers
| Remoras are usually associated with large animals in the open
ocean. They use a special suction device on the forehead to
hitchhike on other animals to conserve energy. They feed upon bait
and scraps of food left by their host. They may occasionally
attach themselves to swimmers or divers. |
Remora remora
Grand Bahama Island |
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COMMON REMORA
Nagakoban
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Commensal with sharks or turtles, occasionally
free-living. Warm seas worldwide. Attains 34 inches. |

Echeneis naucrates
Grand Bahama Island |
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SLENDER REMORA
Kobanzame
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Commensal with larger animals or free-living.
May attach to divers. Warm seas worldwide. Attains 44
inches. |

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