Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis

Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis. Fish caught within Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur, May 2017. Length: 37 cm (15 inches).

Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis. Fish provided by the commercial bait salesmen of Puerto Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, August 2007. Length: 38 cm (15 inches).

Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, October 2017. Length: 38 cm (15 inches). Catch and photograph courtesy of Kenneth Tse, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, March 2016. Length: 38 cm (15 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).

Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis. Fish caught from coastal waters off Mazatlán, Sinaloa, October 2017. Length: 56 cm (22 inches). Catch and photograph courtesy of George Brinkman, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis. Fish caught off Point Palmilla, Baja California Sur, July 2023. Length: 71 cm (2 feet 4 inches). Catch courtesy of Mauricio Correa, Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.

The Mexican Barracuda, Sphyraena ensis, is a member of the Barracuda or Sphyraenidae Family, and is known in Mexico as barracuda mexicana. Globally, there are twenty-six species in the genus Sphyraena, of which eight are found in Mexican waters, three in the Atlantic and five in the Pacific Ocean.

The Mexican Barracuda has an overall barracuda-like appearance and predominant silver coloration with black markings, which include a strong lateral line and chevrons along the sides. Their caudal fins are gray and deeply forked; their pelvic fins provide a key identification characteristic, as they originate under the pectoral tips and well before the first dorsal fin; their pectoral fins are mid-sized with 13 rays.

The Mexican Barracuda is found in and around reefs at depths up to 15 m (50 feet). They reach a maximum 1.32 m (4 feet 4 inches) in length. As of January 1, 2023, the International Game Fish Association world record stood at 13 kg (28 lbs) with the fish caught off Panama in March 2010. The Mexican Barracuda is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

The Mexican Barracuda is a resident of Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean but has a limited distribution being found along the entire west coast of Baja, from La Paz, Baja California Sur, southward along the southeast coast of Baja, and along the coast of the mainland from Guaymas, Sonora to Guatemala.

The Mexican Barracuda is most likely confused with the Blackfin Barracuda, Sphyraena qenie (dark anal, caudal and dorsal fins, 13 pectoral fin rays, pelvic fins inserted under the pectoral fins and before the first dorsal fin), the Cortez Barracuda, Sphyraena lucasana (pale caudal fin, 16 pectoral fin rays, pelvic fins inserted behind the pectoral fins and under the first dorsal fin), the Pacific Barracuda, Sphyraena argentea (yellow caudal fin, 16 pectoral fin rays, pelvic fins inserted behind the pectoral fins and before the first dorsal fin), and the Pelican Barracuda, Sphyraena idiastes (gray caudal fin with dark edges, 13 pectoral fin rays, pelvic fins inserted behind the pectoral fins and under the first dorsal fin).

From a conservation perspective the Mexican Barracuda is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable widely distributed populations. They are fairly common at certain times of year in numerous locations but are viewed by locals to be of poor food value.