Coryphaena hippurus The dolphinfish is also often called mahi-mahi, and not at all related to the marine mammal dolphins. This colorful, distinct fish has a long body and a blunt face, with a forked caudal fin (tail), and a dorsal fin that runs the length of its body. It is brightly colored, most
Danger to Humans There have been reports of ciguatera poisoning from human consumption
Megalops atlanticus These long fish have slightly upturned faces and soft, lobed fins, and they can grow to more than 8 feet long and over 350 pounds. From above they appear dark blue or greenish black, or even brassy if they’ve been in inland waters, but they are recognizable for their very shin
Danger to Humans Though tarpon usually spook easily and show extreme wariness when
Sphyrna mokarran The great hammerhead is the largest of the hammerheads in the family Sphyrnidae. The “hammer head�, or cephalophoil, is straight and square relative to the major axis of the body. The body is stout and classically shark-shaped with a markedly tall, curved, first dorsal fin. T
fight, they tire quickly and are some of the more physiologically fragile species Danger
Isurus oxyrinchus The shortfin mako is considered the fastest shark in the world, able to reach burst swimming speeds of up to 43 mph (70 km h-1) (Diez et al. 2015). This classically shaped shark is hydrodynamically efficient with a pointed snout, triangular dorsal fin and large and a crescen
Danger to Humans Although an oceanic species, the shortfin mako’s power and speed
Aetobatus narinari These rays have a very wide diamond-shaped pectoral disc that can reach over 9 feet wide, and is a dramatic dark color scattered with light spots or rings. It can grow to over 8 feet long, and when including the incredibly long whip-like tail, it has been measured at over 16 fe
Danger to Humans Generally a shy species, spotted eagle rays are wary of divers
History of the United States Endangered Species Act Conservation efforts to save species of plants and animals from extinction began in the early 1900s. A species of plant or animal is considered extinct when there are no living members of that group found alive anywhere on Earth; in other words, a
The ENDANGERED category applies to any species considered to be in danger of becoming
Carcharhinus brevipinna The spinner shark is a slender, gray-bronze shark named for its distinctive aerial „spinning“ behavior at the surface. When feeding, spinner sharks will often swim through schools of bait fish, spinning along their longitudinal axis, snapping at fish as they move through t
Danger to Humans Although the spinner shark is not considered dangerous to humans
Carcharhinus longimanus This large shark is readily recognized by its long white-tipped paddle-like pectoral fins and rounded first dorsal fin (Compagno et al. 2005). Solitary and slow moving, it prefers the upper layers of deep-water areas, where it is an opportunistic hunter (Baum et al. 2015).
Danger to Humans Although primarily found offshore, the oceanic whitetip is considered
Hexanchus griseus This large, deepwater shark is an example of significantly more primitive species found only as fossils. It has a broad, flat head, large green eyes, and a small, single dorsal fin far along its back. Average length is 15 to 16 feet long, and it is gray to olive to brown in colo
Danger to Humans This shark has not been reported to attack people without being
Albula vulpes This elusive, silvery fish is prized among fishers, but because of restrictions and its many bones, it is often released instead of brought in as food. These hard-to-find ‚gray ghosts‘ appear dark blue-green from above with silver sides streaked with darker grey. Due to their fe
Danger to Humans Bonefish pose no threat to humans, though ciguatera poisoning may
