Description: An oceanic billfish, slender, fusiform, and moderately compressed laterally, with a relatively short bill, round in cross-section. The dorsal profile of the head slopes gently from the base of the bill to the origin of the first dorsal fin. Two dorsal fins, the first one long, higher than the body depth anteriorly, but sloping down rapidly to a much lower height. Two separate anal fins. The lobes of the first dorsal and first anal finshave a truncated, blunt shape. Pectoral and pelvic fins are similar in size. Has two keels on each side of the caudal peduncle. Caudal fin strongly forked. Scales on the sides of the body soft and rounded anteriorly; those on the dorsal and ventral parts of the body are elongate and stiff. Dark blue dorsally; silvery white on the belly and flanks; vertical stripes visible in live specimens.
Global Distribution: Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea, in temperate and tropical waters.
BIOLOGICAL FEATURES
Size: Maximum length 184 cm (fork length); maximum published weight 21.5 kg;
Population structure & migrations: Highly migratory species.
ECOLOGICAL FEATURES
Depth range: FishBase: 0 - 200 m
Habitat: Pelagic, oceanic.
Feeding habits:
Trophic level: FishBase: 4.4
FISHERIES
Commercial interest: Commercial species. Valued as gamefish.
Conservation status: Global: Data deficient.
Europe: Data deficient.
Nutritional information & food safety:
REFERENCES
Beerkircher L.R., Lee D.W., Hinteregger G.F. (2008). Roundscale spearfish Tetrapturus georgii: Morphology, distribution, and relative abundance in the western North Atlantic. Bulletin of Marine Science, 82(1): 155-170.
Bernard A.M., Shivji M.S., Domingues R.R., Hazin F.H.V., de Amorim A.F., Domingo A., Arocha F., Prince E.D., Hoolihan J.P., Hilsdorf A.W.S. (2013). Broad geographic distribution of roundscale spearfish (Tetrapturus georgii) (Teleostei, Istiophoridae) in the Atlantic revealed by DNA analysis: Implications for white marlin and roundscale spearfish management. Fisheries Research, 139: 93-97.
Hureau J.-C., ed. (1984-1985). Fishes of the North-Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO. Accessed through: Marine Species Identification Portal. World Wide Web electronic publication. http://species-identification.org (2014).
IUCN (2014). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org
Nakamura I. (1985). FAO Species Catalogue Vol. 5. Billfishes of the World. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of marlins, sailfishes, spearfishes and swordfishes known to date. FAO Fisheries Synopses, 125 vol.5, 65 pp.
Nieto A., Ralph G.M., Comeros-Raynal M.T., Kemp J., GarcÃa Criado M., Allen D.J., Dulvy N.K., Walls R.H.L., Russell B., Pollard D., GarcÃa S., Craig M., Collette B.B., Pollom R., Biscoito M., Labbish Chao N., Abella A., Afonso P., Ãlvarez H., Carpenter K.E., Clò S., Cook R., Costa M.J., Delgado J., Dureuil M., Ellis J.R., Farrell E.D., Fernandes P., Florin A-B., Fordham S., Fowle, S., Gil de Sola L., Gil Herrera J., Goodpaster A., Harvey M., Heessen H., Herler J., Jung A., Karmovskaya E., Keskin C., Knudsen S.W., Kobyliansky S., KovaÄić M., Lawson J.M., Lorance P., McCully Phillips S., Munroe T., Nedreaas K., Nielsen J., Papaconstantinou C., Polidoro B., Pollock C.M., Rijnsdorp A.D., Sayer C., Scott J., Serena F., Smith-Vaniz W.F., Soldo A., Stump E., Williams J.T. (2015). Europen Red List of Marine Fishes. IUCN and European Union, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 90 pp.
Shivji M.S., Magnussen J.E., Beerkircher L.R., Hinteregger G., Lee D.W., Serafy J.E., Prince E.D. (2006). Validity, identification, and distribution of the roundscale spearfish, Tetrapturus georgii (Teleostei: Istiophoridae): Morphological and molecular evidence. Bulletin of Marine Science, 79(3): 483-491.
