4. White marlin, Makaira mar Una (Jordan and Hubbs) 



Black marlin (America). 



Standing-wing apearfish (Formosa). 



This fish is also known as the shirokawa kajiki , shiro , and katahari . This is the 

 largest of all the tunas and spearfishes, the biggest specimen the writer ever encountered in his 

 studies having been slightly less than 4 meters in length and 564 kilograms in weight. According 

 to the fishermen, there are records of even larger specimens having been taken. 



The body depth is great, and that portion of the body forward of the vent is strongly 

 compressed laterally. The part of the body anterior to the insertion of the first dorsal fin rises 

 up sharply, giving rise to the name katahari ("square shoulders"). No bands of cobalt spots can 

 be seen on the sides of the body. The structure of the pectoral fins is completely different from 

 that of the other species, and as these fins stand out at approximately right angles from the sides 

 of the body, this fish is called the "standing-wing spearfish" in the Formosan language. In all 

 of the other species the pectoral fins can be folded in along the sides of the body, but the white 

 marlin is conspicuously characterized by the fact that this cannot be done without destroying the 

 articulation of these fins. 



The color of the flesh appears to be somewhat lighter than that of the striped marlin. 

 It is difficult to generalize on this point because in this species, as in others, the color of the 

 flesh appears to vary somewhat with the Area and the season. Both the appearance and the 

 flavor are very good when the fish is served sliced raw. It is especially flavorful when there is 

 abundant fat. 



These fish occur throughout the year in warm seas. It appears that their distribution 

 extends to rather high latitudes and the northern limit of their distribution in Japanese waters is 

 not clearly known. In the southern sea areas they appear to be particularly abundant in such en- 

 closed waters as the Celebes Sea, Sulu Sea, and South China Sea, and it seems that they are 

 generally numerous in the vicinity of islands. In Formosan waters they are taken in the greatest 

 numbers on the South China Sea side from October to December, and they are most abundant in 

 the Kuroshio in February and March. In the East China Sea in general, they are taken along the 

 100-fathom line, and they reach the Saishuto (Quelpart Island) area. 



It is an interesting fact that there is a marked difference in size between the sexes, 

 the males being generally small and the females large. The males reach a maximum weight of 

 130 kilograms, but the biggest female recorded was 564 kilograms. The same phenomenon is 

 seen in the case of the black marlin, as will be noted later, but in this case the males attain 

 weights of only about 100 to 120 kilograms and all fish over this size .are fennales. As yet no 

 adequate biological explanation can be given for this phenomenon. 



5. Black marlin, Makaira mazara (Jordan and Snyder) 



Crow-skin spearfish (Formosa). 



This fish is also called kilro, kurokawa, and genba . It is not clear what this species 

 is called in the United States. The name mazara is derived from the name mazaara used in the 

 BOshQ region, but it is very doubtful whether the fish reported as a new species by Jordan ajid 

 Snyder was a black marlin, the present author inclining to the opinion that it vas not. However, 

 the presently accepted name mazara will be employed here. 



The body is very stout with the lateral compression less marked than in other spe- 

 cies. The fish looks shorter than other species. There are from 10 to 20 transverse bars on 



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