Topic: needlefish

needlefish common name for members of the family Belonidae, which comprises 50 species of elongated, surface-swimming predaceous fish abundant in warm seas. They have beaklike jaws armed with sharp teeth, giving them a superficial resemblance to the gar ; some needlefishes reach a length of 6 ft (1.8 m). The saltwater garfish, Strongylura longirostris, may be 4 ft (1.2 m) long but is usually smaller; it is found in Atlantic coastal waters and estuaries. Garfishes resemble twigs and are often mistaken for them when lying motionless at the surface of the water. They swim in small schools... Read more