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SEVENTH REPORT OF THE FOREST, FISH AND GAME COMMISSION. 



89. Swordfish {Xiphias g/adiKS 'L\nn7E.ns). 



Xiphias gladius DeKay, N. Y. Fauna, Fishes, III, pi. 26, fig. 79, 1842; Jordan' & Gil- 

 bert, Bull. 16, U. S. Nat. Mus., 420, 1883; Jordan & Evermann, Bull. 47, U. S. 

 Nat. Mus., I, 894, 1896. 



Color above rich purplish blue, shading into whitish beneath, the sides and belly 

 with a silvery lustre. Fins, dark bluish with silvery sheen, except dorsal. Top of 

 head rich purplish blue, the color extending upon the rostrum. Lower side of ros- 

 trum rich brownish purple. Eye deep blue. 



SWORDFISH— adult. 



The Swordfish inhabits the Atlantic and comes near both coasts; it is most 

 abundant between Cuba and Cape Breton, rather common in the Mediterranean, 

 and is occasionally taken off Southern California. The fish appear in the vicinity 

 of Sandy Hook about June first, and the fishing season continues as far east as 

 Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Shoals till about the middle of September. 



SWORDFISH — YOUNG. 



They disappear to the southward as soon as the cold winds begin to blow. They 

 feed on Mackerel, Menhaden and Squid. They are often caught on trawl lines, but 

 the chief means of capture is the harpoon. 



The average length of Swordfish is 10 feet, but individuals measuring 16 feet are 

 on record. An individual weighing 750 pounds was killed in 1874 off Portland. 



The flesh of this fish is very palatable, and the fishery is an important one as well 

 as an exciting occupation. 



