Toby S. Daly-Engel

                             Barracuda phylogeography

The great barracuda, Sphyraena barracuda, is a common reef predator found in most coastal ocean environments throughout the world.  Although there are five known barracuda species that vary widely in terms of size, color pattern, and behavior, the great barracuda has always been considered a single species, until now.  Preliminary genetic evidence has shown that the great barracuda may actually constitute two virtually indistinguishable but completely separate species. 

Now, researchers at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology, in affiliation with the University of Hawaii, are using mitochondrial DNA analysis and other genetic techniques to try to resolve the global phylogeography of this species.  We hope that this research may provide scientists with useful information on the ecology and distribution of large reef-associated predatory fishes throughout the world.

If you have access to Sphyraena barracuda and you want to help, click here to download a collection protocol and species description.

 

Photo by Jeff Eble