Belonidae
| Needlefish | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Tylosurus crocodilus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Beloniformes |
| Family: |
Belonidae Bonaparte, 1832 |
| Genera | |
|
Ablennes |
|
Ablennes
Belone
Belonion
Petalichthys
Platybelone
Potamorrhaphis
Pseudotylosurus
Strongylura
Tylosurus
Xenentodon
Needlefish (family Belonidae) or Long Tom are piscivorous fishes primarily associated with very shallow marine habitats or the surface of the open sea. Some genera include species found in marine, brackish, and freshwater environments (e.g., Strongylura) while a few genera are confined to freshwater rivers and streams, including Belonion, Potamorrhaphis, and Xenentodon. Needlefish closely resemble North American freshwater gars (family Lepisosteidae) in being elongated and having long, narrow jaws filled with sharp teeth, and some species of needlefishes are referred to as gars or garfish despite being only distantly related to the true gars. In fact, the name "garfish" was originally used for the needlefish Belone belone in Europe and only later applied to the North American fishes by European settlers during the 18th century.
Needlefish are slender fish, ranging from 3 to 95 cm (1.2 to 37.4 in) in length. They have a single dorsal fin, placed far back on the body, almost opposite to the anal fin. Their most distinctive feature is their long, narrow beak, which bears multiple sharp teeth. In most species, the upper jaw only reaches its full length in adulthood, so the juveniles have a half-beak appearance, with an elongated lower jaw, but a much smaller upper one. During this stage of their lifecycle, they eat plankton, switching to fish once the beak fully develops. Needlefish reproduce through mating and lay eggs. The male usually rides the female on the waves as they mate.
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Wikipedia