swordfish Pictures |
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Swordfish Photos Showing This Streamlined Hunter with a Bill like a Sword |
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Swordfish, Xiphias gladius, are large, streamlined fish easily identified by their long, flat bill. "Gladius" means "sword", referring to the sword-like nature of the bill. Swordfish are blackish-brown above, fading to a lighter shade below. The fins are brown or dark brown, the bodies elongated, and they lose all teeth and scales by adulthood. Swordfish reach a maximum size of nearly 15 feet and 1,400 pounds, with females tending to be larger than similar age males. They reach sexual maturity at around five years and live to approximately nine years. The swordfish is found worldwide, in temperate, tropical, and some colder waters, including the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Swordfish are migratory, moving to warm waters in the winter and cool waters in the summer.
Swordfish eat pelagic fish, cuttlefish, squid and other cephalopods, using their sword to slash larger prey to disable it. It is a very fast swimmer, and this plus its agility in the water, make it a formidable hunter. Swordfish are cold blooded animals,but they have special organs next to their eyes to heat their eyes and also their brain, to up to 10 degrees C above the surrounding water temperature. This enhances their vision and makes catching prey easier. Swordfish swim alone or in very loose groups with a large separation between each other. They breach out of the water, possibly to dislodge pests or to stun small fish. Swordfish are vigorous, powerful fighters - although there are no reports of unprovoked attacks on people, swordfish can be very dangerous when harpooned. The adults have few natural enemies, with the exception of large sharks, sperm whales, orcas, and man.
Swordfish reproduce by spawning. Solitary males and females pair up during the spawning season, which can be year-round in warm seas but only spring and summer in cooler oceans.
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Picture of a broadbill swordfish, Xiphias gladius ( c ), Mediterranean Sea
Image #: 001311 |
Image of swordfish, Xiphias gladius, for sale at wholesale shop, Tsukiji Fish Market or Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market, the world's largest fish market
Image #: 013956 |
Stock photo of fishermen handling a catch of swordfish, Xiphias gladius, Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic
Image #: 075505 |
Photo of a free leaping swordfish, Xiphias gladius, Azores Islands, Portugal, North Atlantic
Image #: 093353 |
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Picture of a shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, attacking swordfish, Xiphias gladius, illustration
Image #: 009194 |
Image of a broadbill swordfish, Xiphias gladius, caught as bycatch and photographed in tonnara ( tuna net ), Caloforte, Sardegna, Mediterranean
Image #: 010887 |
Stock photo of a baby broadbill swordfish, Xiphias gladius, replica, Hawaii, Pacific Ocean
Image #: 010024 |
Photo of a swordfish, Xiphias gladius, caught in open-ocean drift gill net, Mediterranean Sea
Image #: 061021 |
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Picture of a swordfish, Xiphias gladius, lateral view, pen and ink illustration
Image #: 0067117 |
Image of swordfish, Xiphias gladius, carcasses, Nanfang'ao fish market, Suao, Taiwan, Republic of China
Image #: 081415 |
Stock photo of commercial fishing vessel, fishermen handle catch of swordfish, Xiphias gladius, Italy, Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic
Image #: 075725 |
Photo of a shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, attacking swordfish, Xiphias gladius, pen and ink illustration.
Image #: 067218 |
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Picture of a broadbill swordfish, Xiphias gladius, caught as bycatch and photographed in tonnara ( tuna net ), Caloforte, Sardegna, Mediterranean
Image #: 010888 |
Image of fishermen hold swordfish, Xiphius gladius, Florida Strait off Miami, Florida, Atlantic
Image #: 095824 |
Stock photo of a swordfish, Xiphias gladius, caught in open-ocean drift gill net, Mediterranean Sea
Image #: 061022 |
Photo of a free leaping swordfish, Xiphias gladius, Azores Islands, Portugal, North Atlantic
Image #: 093352 |
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