Scomberesocidae

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis/Classis: Actinopterygii
Classis/Subclassis: Actinopteri
Subclassis/Infraclassis: Neopterygii
Infraclassis: Teleostei
Megacohors: Osteoglossocephalai
Supercohors: Clupeocephala
Cohors: Euteleosteomorpha
Subcohors: Neoteleostei
Infracohors: Eurypterygia
Sectio: Ctenosquamata
Subsectio: Acanthomorphata
Divisio/Superordo: Acanthopterygii
Subdivisio: Percomorphaceae
Series: Ovalentaria
Superordo: Atherinomorphae
Ordo: Beloniformes
Subordo: Belonoidei
Superfamilia: Scomberesocoidea

Familia: Scomberesocidae
Genera: Cololabis - Scomberesox
Name

Scomberesocidae
References

Nelson, J.S. 2006. Fishes of the World, fourth edition. John Wiley, Hoboken, 624 pp. ISBN 0-471-25031-7. ISBN 978-0-471-25031-9. Reference page.

Vernacular names
čeština: Rohoretkovití
English: Saury
español: Papardas
Nederlands: Makreelgepen
polski: makreloszowate

Sauries are fish of the family Scomberesocidae. There are two genera, each containing two species. The name Scomberesocidae is derived from scomber (which in turn is derived from the Greek skombros, meaning 'mackerel') and the Latin esox meaning pike.[1]

Sauries are marine epipelagic fish which live in tropical and temperate waters. These fish often jump while swimming near the surface, skimming the water, which is similar to flying fish, a fellow member of the order beloniformes. The jaws of sauries are beak-like, ranging from long, slender beaks to relatively short ones with the lower jaw only slightly elongated. The mouth openings of sauries, however, are small and the jaws have weak teeth. The most distinctive feature of sauries, however, is the presence of a row of small finlets behind the dorsal and anal fins. They also lack swim bladders. Sauries grow to a maximum length of about 46 centimetres (18 in), but the group also includes the smallest of all epipelagic fish, Cololabis adocetus, with an adult length of just 7.5 centimetres (3.0 in).[2]

They are harvested commercially as a food fish; Pacific saury are consumed often in Japanese and Korean cuisine. The fish is usually grilled.

The Saury, a Sargo-class submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for this fish.
Genera

There are two recognised genera within the family Scomberesocidae:[3]

Cololabis Gill, 1896
Scomberesox Lacepède, 1803