NL·0501Herbarium of the Nature Library
- Name
- Istiophorus platypterus
- Family
- Istiophoridae
- Native to
- Tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans
- Habitat
- Open ocean (pelagic), Coastal waters
Sailfish
Istiophorus platypterus
Also calledAtlantic sailfish (former I. albicans) · Pez vela (Spanish) · Bashōkajiki (Japanese) · Ikan layaran (Malay) · Voilier (French)
A billfish with a towering, sail-like dorsal fin that it raises while groups herd sardines into tight balls. Atlantic and Indo-Pacific sailfish are now treated as one species.
The Indo-Pacific sailfish is a sailfish native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans and is naturalized in the Atlantic where it has entered the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal as a Lessepsian migrant. It is dark blue on top, brown-blue laterally, silvery white underbelly; upper jaw elongated in the form of a spear; first dorsal fin greatly enlarged in the form of a sail, with many black cones, its front squared off, highest at its midpoint; pelvic fins very narrow, reaching almost to the anus; body covered with embedded scales, blunt at end; lateral line curved above pectoral fin, then straight to base of tail. They have a large and sharp bill, which they use for hunting. They feed on tuna and mackerel, some of the fastest fish in the ocean. Most authorities only recognise a single species of sailfish, I. platypterus. Wikipedia
What it can do
- iRaises its sail and flashes colour bands while hunting in groups
- iiRapidly changes colour, lighting up with blue bars when excited
- iiiHunters take turns slashing into bait balls with the bill, injuring and knocking loose sardines
- ivOften called the fastest fish, though 100+ km/h claims are disputed and measured bursts are much lower
In the field
Field marks
- aHuge, sail-like first dorsal fin, taller than the body is deep, dark blue with black spots
- bLong, round, slender bill
- cVery long, narrow pelvic fins
- dDark blue back, silvery sides with rows of pale blue spots or bars
- Not to be confused with
- Marlins and spearfish have a much lower dorsal fin; swordfish has a flat bill and no pelvic fins.
- Where to see it
- Isla Mujeres, Mexico (sardine bait balls), Stuart, Florida ('Sailfish Capital of the World'), Guatemala's Pacific coast
- When
- Isla Mujeres Jan–Mar; Florida in winter
Life & habits
- Diet
- Sardines, anchovies, mackerel, squid
- Habitat
- Warm surface waters above the thermocline, often near coasts and islands
- Size
- Up to ~3.4 m and 100 kg; most under 2.7 m
Groups encircle a school of sardines, raise sails to compress it, then take turns striking with the bill so that each fish's attack is brief.
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Native range
Tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the old herbals & bestiaries
Woodcuts and engravings matched from the Source Library’s scanned books by name. Plates marked “relative” show a close kin rather than this exact species. Click a plate to read the page it came from, with translation.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Istiophorus platypterus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
Marginalia
Sport anglers in Stuart, Florida made the sailfish a symbol of catch-and-release fishing in the 20th century; it is Florida's state saltwater fish.
Curiosity
The bill bears tiny tooth-like denticles that wear down from repeated slashing, and injured sardines are rarely impaled.
Kinship
Fact-checked: 1 correction made to this sheet. Photographs: iNaturalist contributors under the licences shown. Records: GBIF.org. Historical plates: Source Library (CC BY-SA 4.0; originals public domain). Summary text: Nature Library editors and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Medicinal and edibility notes are historical and educational, not advice. iNaturalist taxon 119719.