Yellowmouth Barracuda - Sphyraena viridensis - Striped Formation beside the Wreck

A close formation of Yellowmouth Barracuda passes beside the Um El Faroud wreck in Malta, revealing their pointed heads and distinctive dark vertical flank bars.

The Yellowmouth Barracuda (Sphyraena viridensis) has a long, slender and streamlined body with a conical pointed snout, elongated mouth and prominent lower jaw armed with long canine-like teeth. The upper body is generally bluish-grey to greenish, becoming paler and more silvery below, while numerous dark vertical bars mark the flanks and extend below the lateral line on the forward part of the body. Its two dorsal fins are widely separated and the strongly forked tail provides powerful propulsion for fast swimming in open water. Yellowmouth Barracuda are pelagic predators that feed mainly on fishes, together with cephalopods and crustaceans. They may occur individually but frequently gather into schools around rocky reefs, steep drop-offs and underwater structures. The species inhabits waters from the surface to around 100 metres and can reach approximately 128 centimetres in length. This close underwater photograph captures several Yellowmouth Barracuda travelling in a tight formation beside the structure of the Um El Faroud wreck in Malta, with their characteristic striped pattern particularly clearly visible.