Scomberesocidae

Pacific saury ( cololabis saira )

Saury (also deceit pike ) are bony fish and are one of the five families of the order of the Garfish -like ( Beloniformes ). The scientific name Scomberesocidae is derived from the Greek skombros = tuna -like / mackerel and the Latin esox = pike. The family contains four species. As fossils occur saury first time in the upper Tertiary, Miocene on.

Features

Saury are deep sea fish and native to tropical and warm waters. They form flocks, staying close to the water surface and jump out of the water at risk. In early summer, they spawn in the open sea. Their diet consists mainly of free-swimming crustaceans and smaller fish. The jaws of mackerel pike are beak -like shape, depending on the type of slightly elongated mandibles to long, narrow beaks. However, the mouth openings of the saury are relatively small and the jaw only weakly dentate. Other features are similar to mackerel or tuna, the rows of small fin behind the dorsal and anal fins. An unusual feature of this genus of fish is that they do not have swim bladders. Full-grown mackerel pike up to 46 cm long. They are fished commercially as food fish and are especially popular in Japanese cuisine. There, they are also used as sushi fish ( Sanma ). The Atlantic saury ( Scomberesox saurus ) is widespread throughout the North Atlantic and come to the Canary Islands and in the Mediterranean off into it. In the more southern parts of that circulation area are also the spawning grounds. With the seasonal warming of the Atlantic, the fish migrate north to Nova Scotia (Canada), Iceland and Norway and dive occasionally also in the North Sea.

Saury fishing are used in the New Zealand tuna as bait.

System

Traditionally, the saury be considered a separate family within the Garfish -like. However, phylogenetically they are among the garfish ( Belonidae ), which are a paraphyletic taxon without the involvement of saury. There are two kinds with each of two types, one of which is subdivided into two subtypes.

• Cololabis cololabis adocetus
• Pacific saury or Pacific Saury ( cololabis saira )

• Atlantic saury ( Scomberesox saurus saurus )
• Scomberesox saurus scombroides
• Dwarf saury ( Scomberesox simulans )

Swell

• Joseph S. Nelson: Fishes of the World, John Wiley & Sons, 2006, ISBN 0-471-25031-7.