DONATE
Back to Fish4Life Project
Help improve Fish4Life

Fish4Life provides everything you need to enjoy seafood responsibly. Explore information and practical tips for safe and sustainable seafood consumption, and help protect marine life by reporting undersized or illegally traded seafood.

Yellowstripe barracuda
Sphyraena chrysotaenia
Κουτσομουρόλουτσος

Sustainability Status

Sustainable food source

REPORT IT
Help us protect our seas by reporting illegal or undersized fish that you see in markets, restaurants or fishing boats
Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable
Alien / Invasive – This species is not from this region and can have a negative impact on the ecosystem and threaten local biodiversity, so it is sustainable to eat

Legal

Minimum Size

–

Prohibited Consumption Period

–

Sustainable

Minimum Size

–

Avoid Consumption Period

–

Advice for Consumption

Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable.

Archipelagos Tips

Consumption of this species helps the ecosystem as it is an alien species!

Common names

FR

Bécune à ligne jaune

it

Barracuda a strisce gialle

es

Picuda obtusa

tr

İskarmoz

pt

Bicuda-amarela

nl

Geelstreep-barrakuda

de

Stumpfer Barrakuda

toxicity

This species is safe to consume.

iucn info

-

Description

It has an elongated body with two separate dorsal fins. The back is yellowish-grey, while the belly is white to silvery. The caudal fin is yellow, with a black upper and trailing edge. A dusky band extends from the snout through the centre of the eye, above the pectoral fin base, and along the body to the caudal peduncle.

It looks like Sphyraena flavicauda (Yellowtail barracuda), which is similar in size and appearance to Sphyraena chrysotaenia. Distinguishing features include subtle differences in fin coloration, scale counts, and gill raker characteristics.

Did you know?

The alien yellowstriped barracuda has an incredibly short lifespan, living for a maximum of only five years!

Ecological Aspects

Diet

Macro/hyperbenthivorous.
Feeds mainly on other schooling species such as clupeids and anchovies, supplemented by crustaceans.

habitat

Benthopelagic.
Lives inshore, in the pelagic and demersal zones to a depth of 50 m. Found also in Posidonia oceanica meadows.

Max size & depth range

Max length: 32.2 cm
Max weight: 148 g
Depth Range: 1-50 m

breeding & Growth

It is a migrant species that breeds primarily from spring through autumn, with variations depending on the region. Spawning typically occurs in warm waters through external fertilization, after which planktonic eggs and larvae drift with ocean currents. In the eastern Mediterranean, the breeding season generally extends from May to October, with a less prominent secondary peak sometimes observed between November and January.
Growth Rate: Slow (k = 0.09yr⁻¹).

Longevity & presence

Lifespan: 4-5 years
Max reported age: 5 years
Distribution: It is a subtropical marine fish with a primary distribution spanning the Indo-Pacific. It is widely established as a species that migrated from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal.

appearance changes

It undergoes several key physical changes as it grows, mainly related to size, body proportions, and the intensity of its characteristic colour markings. Juveniles typically display more subdued pale or greenish-brown colouring, which gradually develops into the species’ distinct silvery-white belly and brownish-grey back in adults.

Reproductive Cycle

The Mediterranean Sea has a prolonged spawning season. Females are asynchronous multiple spawners, releasing eggs in batches several times per year. A single female produces anywhere from roughly 74,000 to 316,000 eggs per reproductive cycle, depending on her size.
Facebook Youtube Instagram

Help improve Fish4Life!

How did you find Fish4Life?
Is there anything you would improve?
Is there anything else you would like us to add?

Thank you for your contribution. This project is built for the public and should be shaped by its community. We welcome your comments and any information you feel is important to include.

Spotted illegal or undersized seafood? Report it!

Upload a Photo
Date & Location
Where did you spot it?
Please let us know where
What is the name of the business or fishing vessel selling the seafood?
Description:
Additional information (optional)

Your contribution helps us document illegal and unsustainable fishing practices and protect our seas.

If you’d like to learn more about the work of the Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation, please visit our website: https://archipelago.gr/

Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable

Illegal species – Fishing, selling and consumption of this species is illegal

Fishstocks – Declining due to overexploitation

Think before you eat – This species faces increasing pressures and should only be consumed responsibly

Bad choice – Consumption of this species is unsustainable

Health concerns –
Can accumulate dangerously high levels of toxic substances harmful to health

Alien / Invasive – This species is not from this region and can have a negative impact on the ecosystem and threaten local biodiversity, so it is sustainable to eat

Aquafarms – You will commonly find this species coming from aquafarms