352 



FISHERY BULLETIN OF THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



the fish at a glance among all our northern fishes. 

 On a fish 10 feet 10 inches long, which we har- 

 pooned on Georges Bank on the Grampus in July 

 1916, the sword was 42 inches long from its tip to 

 the eyes. 



The swordfish is moderately stout of body, only 

 slightly flattened sidewise, deepest just behind the 

 gill openings, and tapering rearward to a slender 

 caudal peduncle, which bears a single strong 

 longitudinal keel on either side. Apart from the 

 sword the head is short; the lower jaw is pointed, 

 and the mouth so wide that it gapes far back of 

 the very large eyes, which are set close to the base 

 of the sword. Swordfish (except young fry) are 

 both toothless and scaleless. The first dorsal fin 

 originates over the upper angle of the gill openings 

 and is much higher than long (about 39 to 40 

 rays), with deeply concave rear margin. The 

 second dorsal is very small and set far back on the 

 caudal peduncle. There are two anals likewise. 

 The second is as small as the second dorsal and 

 located below the latter, while the first is similar 

 to the first dorsal in outline but shorter, and 

 located well behind it, close to the second anal. 

 The pectorals are narrow, very long, scythe- 

 shaped, and set very low down on the sides below 

 the first dorsal. The caudal fin is short, but as 

 broad as half the length of the fish from top of 

 lower jaw to base of caudal fin, with deeply lunate 

 margin and pointed tips. There are no ventral 

 fins. 60 



Color. — While all swordfish are dark above and 

 whitish with silvery sheen below, the upper surface 

 varies from purplish to a dull leaden blue or even 

 to black. The eye has been described as blue. 

 Very young swordfish, like very young tuna, are 

 transversely barred, but none small enough to 

 show this pattern has ever been found within the 

 limits of the Gulf. The colors fade soon after 

 death. 



Size.- — Swordfish grow to a great size. The 

 heaviest definitely recorded from the Gulf of 

 Maine was one caught on Georges Bank in the 

 summer of 1921 by Capt. Irving King and landed 

 at the Boston Fish Pier, that weighed 915 pounds 

 dressed, hence, upwards of 1,100 pounds alive. 61 

 This specimen was not measured, but the sword 



was more than 5 feet long, so that the total length 

 of the fish must have approximated 15 feet, and 16 

 feet seems to be about the maximum length, 

 though fish as long as this are very unusual. 

 The heaviest landed in Massachusetts during 1922 

 weighed 637 pounds dressed; that is, upward of 

 750 pounds live weight, 62 while the largest taken 

 in 1931 weighed 644 pounds dressed and was 13 

 feet long including its sword, which measured 44 

 inches. One that weighed 925 pounds before it 

 was dressed was landed in 1932; also one weighing 

 650 pounds dressed, which must have weighed 

 800 pounds alive; while one of 850 pounds 

 (dressed?), brought in to Halifax, Nova Scotia, 

 was said to have been the largest ever landed in 

 that port. And several, weighing more than 500 

 pounds, dressed, are reported almost every year. 53 



But the general run are much smaller. Thus 

 the average dressed weights of sundry fares of fish 

 landed in Portland, Boston, and Gloucester in the 

 years 1883-1884, and 1893-1895 were between 200 

 pounds and 310 pounds, falling to 114-186 pounds 

 for the years 1917, 1919, 1926, and 1929-1930. 

 And general report has it that Block Island fish 

 run smaller than Georges Bank and Cape Breton 

 fish. A 7-foot fish weighs about 120 pounds; 10- 

 to 11-foot fish about 250 pounds; fish of 13 to 13K 

 feet, about 600 to 700 pounds, as taken from the 

 water. 



The rod and reel record is 860 pounds, for one 

 13 feet 9 inches long caught off Tocapila, Chile, 

 April 28, 1940, by W. E. S. Tuker. 



Swordfish fry are quite different in appearance 

 from their parents, having only one long dorsal fin 

 and one long anal fin, a rounded tail, both jaws 

 equally prolonged and toothed, and the skin 

 covered with rough spiny plates and scales. But 

 fish of half a pound weight such as are caught in 

 abundance in the Mediterranean already resemble 

 the adults, except that they have minute scales 

 until 30 inches long. 



Habits.** — The swordfish is oceanic, not de- 

 pendent in any way either on the coast (except as 

 this offers a supply of food), or on the bottom; 

 and it is a warm-water fish, most plentiful in 

 localities and at depths where the temperature is 

 higher than about 60°. But occasional captures 



M In the sailfisbes and spearfishes the body is scaly, the jaws are toothed, 

 ventral fins are present, and the first dorsal fin is much longer than that of 

 the swordfish. 



" Fishing Gazette for September 1921, p. 13. 



" Gloucester Times, April 26, 1923. 



« See Rich (Proc. Portland Soc. Nat. Hist., vol. 4, Pt. 2, 1947, pp. 34-37) 

 for these and other large fish landed from year to year. 



» Rich (Proc. Portland Soc. Nat. Hist., vol. 4, pt. 2, 1947) has recently 

 given an extended account of the occurrence and habits of our swordfish. 



