Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) >
Perciformes (Perch-likes) >
Trichiuridae (Cutlassfishes) > Trichiurinae
Etymology: Lepturacanthus: Greek, leptos = thin + Greek, oura = tail + Greek, akantha = thorn (Ref. 45335).
Environment / Climate / Range
Ecology
Marine; brackish; benthopelagic; depth range 0 - 80 m (Ref. 6181). Tropical, preferred ?; 21°N - 5°N, 76°E - 87°E (Ref. 6181)
Indian Ocean: Hooghly estuaries to Gulf of Mannar in the east coast of India.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 92.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6181); common length : 40.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 6181)
Short description
Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal
spines
(total): 3;
Dorsal
soft rays
(total): 121-131;
Anal
spines: 2;
Anal
soft rays: 74 - 84. Body extremely elongate, compressed and tapering to a point. Anal fin reduced to a long spine and 74 - 84 smaller spinules; pelvic and caudal fins absent. Lateral line running nearer the ventral contour than the dorsal contour of the body. Body color steely blue with metallic reflections in fresh specimens, becoming silvery gray after death.
Benthopelagic or pelagic in estuaries and coastal waters. Feeds on a wide variety of small fishes and crustaceans chiefly on prawns, young clupeoids, Harpodon nehereus and Trichiurus spp. in Hooghly estuaries, India. Caught mainly with bag nets in estuaries, with shore seines and boat seines in inshore waters, and with trawls in off-shore waters. Marketed fresh as well as dried salted.
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Nakamura, I. and N.V. Parin, 1993. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 15. Snake mackerels and cutlassfishes of the world (families Gempylidae and Trichiuridae). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of the snake mackerels, snoeks, escolars, gemfishes, sackfishes, domine, oilfish, cutlassfishes,. scabbardfishes, hairtails, and frostfishes known to date. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(15):136 p. (Ref. 6181)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)
CITES (Ref. 94142)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial
More information
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