Family EXOCOETIDAE

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Introduction

The Exocoetidae comprises more than 65 recognised species in seven genera (Nelson et al. 2016). In Australian waters, 28 species in five genera have been recorded, however, the Australian species are not well known. Distribution information has largely come from the literature and most specimens are located in overseas institutions.

Flyingfishes inhabit the surface waters of all three oceans, with most species found in the tropics. Presumably they eat plankton. The greatly enlarged pectoral fins used for gliding above the water are distinctive. Some species also have enlarged pelvic fins and all have the lower lobe of the caudal fin lengthened, enabling them to clear the water. The species attached eggs to floating objects, such as palm fronds. The eggs are harvested commercially from artificial platforms attached to material suspended in the water. Many juveniles have ribbon-like whiskers. Maximum length is 45 cm, but most species are smaller.

The flyingfishes have not been revised recently. Parin (1961a) reviewed species and distributions in the Indo-Pacific, Kovalevskaya (1980) reviewed the larvae and juveniles of 13 Indo-Pacific species and Parin (1996) treated some species known from Australia. Parin & Shakhovskoy (2000) reviewed Exocoetus. Aizawa (2002) recognised Danichthys, which is usually considered a subgenus of Hirundichthys, as a distinct genus and regarded Cheilopogon as a junior synonym of Cypselurus. Shakhovskoy & Parin (2013) reviewed the subgenus I>Hirundichthys, and described H. indicus from the Indian Ocean, with the subspecies H. indicus orientalis recorded from Australian territorial waters. The genus Oxyporhamphus, usually placed in the family Hemiramphidae (Collette et al. 1984; Collette 1999), was placed in the Exocoetidae by Dasilao et al. (1997), but was returned to the Hemiramphidae by Lovejoy et al. (2004). Relationships are discussed by Parin (1961b), Dasilao & Sasaki (1998) and Lovejoy et al. (2004). The classification followed here is based on that of Parin (1996, 1999).

 

General References

Aizawa, M. 2002. Families Hemiramphidae, Exocoetidae, Belonidae, Scomberesocidae. pp. 1516-1518 in Nakabo, T. (ed.). Fishes of Japan with pictorial keys to the species. English edition. Tokyo : Toikai University Press pp. 867-1749.

Collette, B.B. 1999. Family Hemiramphidae. pp. 2180-2196 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 4 pp. 2069-2790.

Collette, B.B., McGowen, G.E., Parin, N.V. & Mito, S. 1984. Beloniformes: development and relationships. pp. 335-354 figs 172-185 in Moser, H.G. et al. (eds). Ontogeny and Systematics of Fishes. American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. Special Publication 1: 1-760

Dasilao, J.C., Sasaki, K. & Okamura, O. 1997. The hemiramphid, Oxyporhamphus, is a flying fish (Exocoetidae). Ichthyological Research 44(2): 101-107

Dasilao, J.C. Jr & Sasaki, K. 1998. Phylogeny of the flyingfish family Exocoetidae (Teleostei, Beloniformes). Ichthyological Research 45(4): 347-353

Kovalevskaya, N.V. 1980. Reproduction, development and distribution patterns of larvae and juveniles of the oceanic flying fishes in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Trudy Instituta Okeanologii. Akademiya Nauk SSSR. Moskva 97: 212-275 figs 1-26 [in Russian]

Lovejoy, N.R., Iranpour, H. & Collette, B.B. 2004. Phylogeny and jaw ontogeny of beloniform fishes. Integrative and Comparative Biology 44: 366-377

Nelson, J.S., Grande, T.C. & Wilson, M.V.H. 2016. Fishes of the World. Hoboken, New Jersey : John Wiley & Sons 5, 752 pp.

Parin, N.V. 1961a. Contribution to the knowledge of the flyingfish fauna (Exocoetidae) of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Trudy Instituta Okeanologii. Akademiya Nauk SSSR. Moskva 42: 40-91 figs 1-19 [in Russian; English transl. U.S. Bur. Comm. Fish. Ichthyol. Lab. Transl. Vol. 27]

Parin, N.V. 1961b. The bases for the classification of the flyingfishes (families Oxyporhamphidae and Exocoetidae). Trudy Instituta Okeanologii. Akademiya Nauk SSSR. Moskva 43: 92-183 figs 1-45 [in Russian; English transl. U.S. Bur. Comm. Fish. Ichthyol. Lab. Transl. Vol. 67]

Parin, N.V. 1996. On the species composition of the flying fish species (Exocoetidae) in the west-central part of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Voprosy Ikhtiologii 36(3): 300-307 [English transl. in J. Ichthyol. 36(5): 357–364]

Parin, N.V. 1999. Family Exocoetidae. pp. 2162-2179 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 4 pp. 2069-2790.

Parin, N.V. & Shakhovskoy, I.B. 2000. A review of the flying fish genus Exocoetus (Exocoetidae) with descriptions of two new species from the southern Pacific Ocean. Journal of Ichthyology 40(Suppl. 1): 31-63

Shakhovskoy, I.B. & Parin, N.V. 2013. A review of flying fishes of the subgenus Hirundichthys (genus Hirundichthys, Exocoetidae). 1. Oceanic species: H. speculiger, H. indicus sp. nova. Journal of Ichthyology 53(2): 117–145

Shakhovskoy, I.B. & Parin, N.W. 2013. A review of flying fishes of the subgenus Hirundichthys (genus Hirundichthys, Exocoetidae). Part 2. Nerito-oceanic species: H. oxycephalus, H. affinis. Journal of Ichthyology 53(8): 509-540 [in Russian in Voprosy Ikhtiologii, 2013, Vol. 53, No. 5, pp. 507–539.]

 

Common Name References

Parin, N.V. 1999. Family Exocoetidae. pp. 2162-2179 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 4 pp. 2069-2790. [2162] (FAO) (Flyingfishes)

Whitley, G.P. 1966. Marine Fishes of Australia. Brisbane : Jacaranda Press Vol. 1 pp. 1-142. [55] (Flying Fishes)

 

History of changes

Published	As part of group	Action Date	Action Type	Compiler(s)
29-Mar-2018	BELONIFORMES	28-Mar-2018	MODIFIED	Dr Dianne Bray (NMV) Dr Doug Hoese (AM) Dr Matthew Lockett (AM)
		12-Feb-2010	(import)